AZERBAIJAN: Oil-rich Azerbaijan, the host to this year's Eurovision Song Contest presents its logo, slogan and chooses the venue for the competition

Record ID: 218168

  • Title: AZERBAIJAN: Oil-rich Azerbaijan, the host to this year's Eurovision Song Contest presents its logo, slogan and chooses the venue for the competition
  • Date: 31st January 2012
  • Summary: EUROVISION POSTER VARIOUS OF "CRYSTAL HALL" COMPLEX - EUROVISION CONTEST VENUE - BEING CONSTRUCTED (SOUNDBITE) (English) ADIL KERIMLI, AZERBAIJANI EUROVISION EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, SAYING: "Baku Crystal Hall which is under construction, it's a modern concert and sport complex, which is really very important and will be really very good one for the city, for Baku city and B
  • Embargoed: 15th February 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan
  • Country: Azerbaijan
  • Topics: Entertainment
  • Reuters ID: LVA7FRFL66JK97012YOB1EW14T09
  • Story Text: Oil-rich Azerbaijan kicked off the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest season with a spectacular live show on Wednesday (January 25) in capital Baku.
    The symbols of the 57th contest, flavoured with national motives were unveiled for the audience.
    Baku 2012 will go into the Eurovision history books under the slogan "Light your fire!"
    Azerbaijan calls itself a Land of Fire and it has all grounds to do so, as its energy recourses bring warmth to many houses in the region and across Europe.
    The visual side of this year's contest was designed by London-based branding company Turquoise, which said that since the dawn of time, mankind has come together around fire to communicate through the telling of stories, song and dance, likewise the Eurovision Song Contest where people come together to do exactly the same.
    Since 2004, the Eurovision Song Contest has a generic logo where in the heart of it the flag of the host country is displayed. However, every year the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) invites the Host Broadcaster to create the visual identity to support the logo.
    The Mayor of Düsseldorf, which was the last year's Host city hand over the Host City Insignia to the Mayor of Baku during the 100-minute event transmitted live by the Host Broadcaster, Ictimai TV, as well as a number of national broadcasters all over Europe.
    European Broadcasting Union (EBU) Reference Group and contest's Executive Supervisor Jon Ola Sand were watching closely the ceremony and the progress of preparations.
    Jon Ola Sand said he was satisfied with the pace of preparation for the event and dedication of their Azerbaijani co-team.
    "Well, so far the preparations have went very well. There has been a lot of energy and dedication from the Azerbaijani co-team, so at this moment we are exactly where we should be," Jon Ola Sand, said during a short break in ceremony of presentation of 2012 Eurovision Song Contest venue, logo and theme arts.
    He said he was pleased that despite unresolved political tensions between the host country and Armenia the latter applied for participation in the contest.
    "I think it is very positive that Armenia decided to participate. I know there is a challenging situation, but I am very sure that Azeri government will provide all the security issues that are necessary to make sure that this will work well," he said.
    Azerbaijan Organizing Committee, which has been working hard for several months to showcase their country, including national auditions, is convinced the Baku 2012 will be one of the most attractive and unforgettable events.
    "About the show which will be held in May… I, I know definitely that it will be a different show. We try to make it different, we try to make it more interesting, more attractive and more amazing and I really hope that it will be like I said," Husniya Maharramova, Azerbaijani Eurovision TV anchor and organization committee member said during one of the national auditions for the contest.
    The Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group, the governing body of the Contest on behalf of the EBU, agreed to choose the "Baku Crystal Hall", the preferred option of Host Broadcaster, Ictimai TV, as the venue of the event, after receiving assurance from the authorities involved that construction will finish on time The Baku Crystal Hall, which construction was commissioned by Baku Mayor's Office, is a multipurpose, indoor arena with a 23,000-spectator capacity. Once equipped for the Eurovision Song Contest, 16,000 fans will be able to attend each of the three live shows in May.
    "Baku Crystal Hall which is under construction, it's a modern concert and sport complex, which is really very important and will be really very good one for the city, for Baku city and Baku city really needs such a biggest and really modern of course, hall, the concert hall, which will be happy to host the event here," said Azerbaijan Eurovision Executive Producer, Adil Kerimli.
    German Alpine Bau Deutschland AG has been selected as a construction contractor in August last year and the company agreed to finish works within eight months. The cost of the contract has not been revealed.
    Kerimli, said he was happy with the pace of organizational works and the staff working on the event.
    "We have a really very good, of course, creative staff; we have very good, talented and experienced partners. And we are proud that we are successful in all these issues and all organizational issues are going smoothly and well so feel that and we promise really very good show to the audience and to the Eurovision Song Contest fans that really very much expect it from us," Adil Kerimli said.
    But Baku 2012 would need thousands of staff and volunteers to make a successful show and please thousands of Eurovision participants and fans.
    The organizers of 2012 Song Contest in Baku are gradually recruit staff and volunteers to prepare for the competition and started training them well in advance.
    The most important and most time consuming issue was to develop basic foreign language skills. Special language courses have been designed for different staff and volunteer groups. A six month English language course for police started last year for thousands of police officers and security personnel in the capital.
    "It's a six month course, specially designed for police officers the basic and here they will learn the basics to communicate with foreign friends coming to Azerbaijan in a coming year and they will have the basic knowledge to communicate with and to he help them when needed," said English teacher, Ramil Mustafayev, after finishing his lesson with a group of police officers.
    Azerbaijan won the right to host the contest when viewers and professional juries across Europe chose their 2011 entry Running Scared by Ell/Nikki as winner.
    The 2012 Eurovision Song Contest will
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