According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "
Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The
European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 17 January 2013, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Azerbaijan was placed into the second semi-final, to be held on 16 May 2013, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show. Once all the competing songs for the 2013 contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. Azerbaijan was set to perform in position 4, following the entry from
Macedonia and before the entry from
Finland. The two semi-finals and final were broadcast in Azerbaijan on
İTV with commentary by Konul Arifgizi. The Azerbaijani spokesperson, who announced the Azerbaijani votes during the final, was Tamilla Shirinova.
Semi-final Farid Mammadov took part in technical rehearsals on 8 and 11 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 15 and 16 May. This included the jury show on 15 May where the professional juries of each country watched and voted on the competing entries. The Azerbaijani performance featured Farid Mammadov dressed in a grey shirt with grey vest and trousers performing with two dancers: one male dressed in black and one female in a red dress with a 20 meter-long train. The male dancer, which conveyed the idea of Mammadov's shadow, performed an acrobatic routine in a transparent glass box filled with pink petals that served as a podium for Mammadov in the first part of the song, while the female dancer, who appeared later, played the role of love. The stage colours were purple and pink, which symbolised the passion within the song and the performance. In regards to the performance, director
Fokas Evangelinos stated: "The glass box symbolises the logic in our lives. But, inside logic there's a whole another world, full of passion, emotions, and love. When you're in love, sometimes you may find your life and soul upside down." The dancers that joined Farid Mammadov on stage were Alexander Kuzmenko and Iyrine Nevmyvanaya. An additional three off-stage backing vocalists were also part of the performance:
Alvaro Estrella, Fernando Fuentes and Jennie Jahns. At the end of the show, Azerbaijan was announced as having finished in the top 10 and subsequently qualifying for the grand final. It was later revealed that Azerbaijan placed first in the semi-final, receiving a total of 139 points.
Final Shortly after the second semi-final, a winners' press conference was held for the ten qualifying countries. As part of this press conference, the qualifying artists took part in a draw to determine which half of the grand final they would subsequently participate in. This draw was done in the order the countries appeared in the semi-final running order. Azerbaijan was drawn to compete in the second half. Following this draw, the shows' producers decided upon the running order of the final, as they had done for the semi-finals. Azerbaijan was subsequently placed to perform in position 20, following the entry from
Iceland and before the entry from
Greece. Farid Mammadov once again took part in dress rehearsals on 17 and 18 May before the final, including the jury final where the professional juries cast their final votes before the live show. Farid Mammadov performed a repeat of his semi-final performance during the final on 18 May. At the conclusion of the voting, Azerbaijan finished in second place with 234 points.
Marcel Bezençon Awards The
Marcel Bezençon Awards, first awarded during the
2002 contest, are awards honouring the best competing songs in the final each year. Named after the creator of the annual contest,
Marcel Bezençon, the awards are divided into 3 categories: the Press Award, given to the best entry as voted on by the accredited media and press during the event; the Artistic Award, presented to the best artist as voted on by the shows' commentators; and the Composer Award, given to the best and most original composition as voted by the participating composers. Farid Mammadov was awarded the Artistic Award, which was accepted at the awards ceremony by Farid Mammadov.
Voting Voting during the three shows consisted of 50 percent public televoting and 50 percent from a jury deliberation. The jury consisted of five music industry professionals who were citizens of the country they represent. This jury was asked to judge each contestant based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury could be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. Following the release of the full split voting by the EBU after the conclusion of the competition, it was revealed that Azerbaijan had placed third with the public televote and second with the jury vote in the final. In the public vote, Azerbaijan received an average rank of 5.86, while with the jury vote, Azerbaijan received an average rank of 7.77. In the second semi-final, Azerbaijan placed third with the public televote with an average rank of 5.28 and second with the jury vote with an average rank of 4.60. Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Azerbaijan and awarded by Azerbaijan in the second semi-final and grand final of the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to Malta in the semi-final and to Ukraine in the final of the contest.
Points awarded to Azerbaijan Points awarded by Azerbaijan ==References==