Darja Švajger
Encyclopedia
Darja Švajger was born in Maribor
, SR Slovenia in 1965. Darja is one of the country's most popular singers but perhaps most known internationally for representing Slovenia
in the Eurovision Song Contest
twice.
, Austria
where she studied classical solo singing and jazz. In 1997 she graduated with Magna cum Laude. Already during her studies she started performing as a solo vocalist with various bands and symphony orchestras.
Since 1992 she has been engaged in several projects of the Slovenian National Theater in Maribor. In 1993 the international jury of the Koper Festival of pop music, known as the Melodies of the Sea and the Sun, awarded her first prize in the Slovenian section of the international category. Soon her first album In the Arms of the Night, followed.
in the Eurovision Song Contest
in Dublin. She performed the song "Prisluhni mi
" ("Listen to me") by Primoc Peterca and Saso Fajon. Her ballad reached 7th place Slovenia's best result to the contest ever. Darja was awarded Pop Singer of the Year in Slovenia for the years 1995 and 1996. In the following years she became very active and her second album, Moments, was released in 1998.
, the national television broadcaster chose her to represent the country to the Eurovision Song Contest
held in Jerusalem. Peterca and Fajon again wrote a ballad for her, entitled "For A Thousand Years
". The composer stated that he was inspired by the city of New York
during his staying there for four months. RTV had high hopes and indeed the song was in the first place during the first minutes of the voting - it even got a 12 points high score from Ireland
. The song scored 50 points and ranked 11th among 23 entries.
Maribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
, SR Slovenia in 1965. Darja is one of the country's most popular singers but perhaps most known internationally for representing Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
in the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
twice.
Early life
Music entered her life when she was still a child. After finishing secondary school she entered the College of Music and attended art classes in GrazGraz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
, 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...
where she studied classical solo singing and jazz. In 1997 she graduated with Magna cum Laude. Already during her studies she started performing as a solo vocalist with various bands and symphony orchestras.
Since 1992 she has been engaged in several projects of the Slovenian National Theater in Maribor. In 1993 the international jury of the Koper Festival of pop music, known as the Melodies of the Sea and the Sun, awarded her first prize in the Slovenian section of the international category. Soon her first album In the Arms of the Night, followed.
Eurovision 1995
1995 was of great importance to her. She represented SloveniaSlovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
in the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1995
The Eurovision Song Contest 1995 was the 40th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 13 May 1995 in the Point Theatre in Dublin, Ireland. The presenter was Mary Kennedy. This contest broke the chain of victories that Ireland enjoyed in 1992, 1993, and 1994...
in Dublin. She performed the song "Prisluhni mi
Prisluhni mi
"Prisluhni mi" was the Slovene entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1995, sung by Darja Švajger in Slovenian.The song was performed twentieth on the night, following Denmark's Aud Wilken with "Fra Mols til Skagen" and preceding Israel's Liora with "Amen"...
" ("Listen to me") by Primoc Peterca and Saso Fajon. Her ballad reached 7th place Slovenia's best result to the contest ever. Darja was awarded Pop Singer of the Year in Slovenia for the years 1995 and 1996. In the following years she became very active and her second album, Moments, was released in 1998.
Eurovision 1999
In 1999 RTVRadiotelevizija Slovenija
Radiotelevizija Slovenija – usually abbreviated to RTV Slovenija – is Slovenia's national public broadcasting organization. Based in the country's capital, Ljubljana, it has regional broadcasting centres in Koper and Maribor and correspondents around Slovenia, Europe and the world...
, the national television broadcaster chose her to represent the country to the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
held in Jerusalem. Peterca and Fajon again wrote a ballad for her, entitled "For A Thousand Years
For A Thousand Years
"For A Thousand Years" was the Slovene entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 1999, sung by Darja Švajger and performed in English, the first time a Slovenian entry was performed in English...
". The composer stated that he was inspired by the city of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
during his staying there for four months. RTV had high hopes and indeed the song was in the first place during the first minutes of the voting - it even got a 12 points high score from Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The song scored 50 points and ranked 11th among 23 entries.