Corde Della Mia Chitarra
Encyclopedia
"Corde della mia chitarra" (Strings of my guitar) was the Italian
entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1957
, performed in Italian
by Nunzio Gallo
.
With lyrics by Giuseppe Fiorelli and music by Mario Ruccione, including live guitar accompaniment provided by Piero Gozo, the song holds the distinction of being the longest song in Contest history. Writer John Kennedy O'Connor describes it as "over five minutes long" in his work on the Contest, and Des Mangan records it as "5 minutes and 9 seconds", as well as suggesting that the listener "would have thought of many better uses for the strings of his guitar". Following this Contest, the rule governing the length of entries was tightened to require them to be no longer than 3.5 minutes initially and later 3 minutes exactly, with both authors agreeing that the change was due to this entry's length. In the 2007 edition of John Kennedy O'Connor's The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History, the song is officially listed as the longest entry in the history of the contest, ironically being performed after the officially listed shortest song.
The song itself is a ballad in the chanson
style popular in the early years of the Contest. Gallo sings of his mixed feelings at seeing a former lover and realising that she is no longer interested in him. He asks the strings of his guitar to play for him alone, since she has no interest in their music anymore.
The song was performed fourth on the night, following the United Kingdom
's Patricia Bredin
with "All
" and preceding Austria
's Bob Martin
with "Wohin, kleines Pony?
". At the close of voting, it had received 7 points, placing it 6th in a field of 10.
It was succeeded as Italian representative
at the 1958 Contest
by Domenico Modugno
with "Nel blu dipinto di blu
".
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1957
Eurovision Song Contest 1957
The Eurovision Song Contest 1957 was the 2nd Eurovision Song Contest. Like the first contest, this one was still mainly a radio programme, but there was a noticeable increase in the number of people with televisions....
, performed in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
by Nunzio Gallo
Nunzio Gallo
Nunzio Gallo was an Italian singer. He was born in Naples and represented his country in the 1957 Eurovision Song Contest, coming 6th. The song he performed, "Corde Della Mia Chitarra", is famous for being the longest song ever played for Eurovision at 5:09 before the new rules came into place....
.
With lyrics by Giuseppe Fiorelli and music by Mario Ruccione, including live guitar accompaniment provided by Piero Gozo, the song holds the distinction of being the longest song in Contest history. Writer John Kennedy O'Connor describes it as "over five minutes long" in his work on the Contest, and Des Mangan records it as "5 minutes and 9 seconds", as well as suggesting that the listener "would have thought of many better uses for the strings of his guitar". Following this Contest, the rule governing the length of entries was tightened to require them to be no longer than 3.5 minutes initially and later 3 minutes exactly, with both authors agreeing that the change was due to this entry's length. In the 2007 edition of John Kennedy O'Connor's The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History, the song is officially listed as the longest entry in the history of the contest, ironically being performed after the officially listed shortest song.
The song itself is a ballad in the chanson
Chanson
A chanson is in general any lyric-driven French song, usually polyphonic and secular. A singer specialising in chansons is known as a "chanteur" or "chanteuse" ; a collection of chansons, especially from the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, is also known as a chansonnier.-Chanson de geste:The...
style popular in the early years of the Contest. Gallo sings of his mixed feelings at seeing a former lover and realising that she is no longer interested in him. He asks the strings of his guitar to play for him alone, since she has no interest in their music anymore.
The song was performed fourth on the night, following the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's Patricia Bredin
Patricia Bredin
Patricia Bredin is a British actress and one-time singer from Hull, England, who was best known as the very first United Kingdom representative in the Eurovision Song Contest. She took part in the 1957 contest, held in Frankfurt, and finished in seventh place out of ten entries with the song All,...
with "All
All (song)
"All" was the United Kingdom entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1957 performed in English by Patricia Bredin. At a length of 1:52 minutes, it has the distinction of being the shortest entry in the history of the Contest as well as being the first song to be performed in English.The song was...
" and preceding Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
's Bob Martin
Bob Martin (singer)
Bob Martin was an Austrian singer, who was the first participant representing Austria in the 1957 Eurovision Song Contest. The first "Austrian" was Freddy Quinn who performed in 1956 represent Germany. Martin, singing in German "Wohin, Kleines Pony?" , placed last in the field of ten...
with "Wohin, kleines Pony?
Wohin, Kleines Pony?
"Wohin, kleines Pony?" was Austria's debut entry in the Eurovision Song Contest, performed in German by Bob Martin...
". At the close of voting, it had received 7 points, placing it 6th in a field of 10.
It was succeeded as Italian representative
Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest
Italy participated in the Eurovision Song Contest frequently from 1956 to 1997. It was one of only seven countries that competed at the very first contest...
at the 1958 Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1958
The Eurovision Song Contest 1958 was the third Eurovision Song Contest. The convention that the winning country from a year hosted the following year's contest was introduced in this year. France's win was their first. It was the last time to date that the United Kingdom did not enter the contest...
by Domenico Modugno
Domenico Modugno
Domenico Modugno was an Italian singer, songwriter, actor, and later in life, a member of the Italian Parliament. He is known for his 1958 international hit song "Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu "...
with "Nel blu dipinto di blu
Volare (song)
"Nel blu dipinto di blu" , popularly known as "Volare" , is Domenico Modugno's signature song....
".