Yipee !!!! Vincent & Fernando won the Grand Prix 2009

I jumped out of my chair last night when they announced that Vincent & Fernando won the Grand Prix der Volksmusik 2009, with their song Der Engel von Marienhof. As we were watching the show, Ted Hierl, from New Jersey called to see if I had heard that Vincent & Fernando had won (he knows I am a big fan). We also talked about the upcoming cruise he has organized with the Orig. Naabtal Duo (see sidebar on left). I am so glad that he called to tell me. We continued watching the show and as the voting results started... Vincent & Fernando, 12 pts; Vincent & Fernando, 12 pts; BOOM our power went OUT !!! We sat there in the dark for about a minute before it started up again. If Ted had not called, I would have been a basket case. Started up the computer again and found that Vincent & Fernando had a perfect score of 36. This time there was no doubt who the winner was. Last year there were two tie breakers and they landed in 2nd place for the 3rd year in a row.

Second place, representing Germany, went to the Bergkameraden & Oswald Sattler -- Ich traume von der Heimat
Third, from Austria was: Pfarrer Franz Brei & Signum -- Das Leben...

If you want the full list and in what order they fell, go to http://www.gpvolksmusik.at/. We congratulate all the artists that took part in the competition. It is an honor for anyone that participates in this event and I am looking forward to next year's competition.

2008 Grand Prix der Volksmusik Scandal

It seems every year there is a lot of drama surrounding the Grand Prix der Volksmusik. This year it started with the Zellberg Buam (Austria) who were slated to compete, but they let the news out before the competition took place. They were disqualified for not sticking with the rules.

On May 23, Sudtirol had their Vorentscheid competition in Algund, Italy. Markus Frings was scheduled to host this show, but the last minute Markus Frings fell ill and Rudy Giovannini (here is a link to his Italian site or take a look at his fanpage-Neckar Alb) stepped in. This would have been all OK, but Rudy had written the song under a pseudonym (pen name), Fabio Omero, that Sauguat sang (and landed 1st place), "Die Schaefer von Schnalstal". This is not allowed according to the rules and promptly Sauguat was disqualified.

Now the 5th place winner, Bergdiamanten (Ein Bisschen Gottvertrauen), will compete for Sudtirol at the finals in Zurich, Switzerland on August 30. Take a look at their website, it already has a Grand Prix der Volksmusik icon with "Auch wir sind dabei". They sure did not waste any time! It's a chance they didn't think they would get.

If you would like to see what the standings were for the Sudtirol Vortentscheid, go the fanclub page for Vincent & Fernando that Maria Olliges hosts. You can see all the standings for the Sudtirol Vorentscheid. A great big THANKS to Maria Olliges who sent me this news. She found this reported on the Bergfeuer website and for those of you who can read German, here is a link to the Bergfeuer webpage. Maria Olliges was the Talent Coordinator for the Stimmung Stunde and is still very active in the Volksmusik scene.