Primaballerina
Encyclopedia
"Primaballerina" is a 1969
song performed by Swedish
singer Siw Malmkvist
and written by Hans Blum
. It was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1969
. Malmkvist was the second of three female Scandinavia
n schlager
artists to represent Germany in the Contest in the late 60s and early 70s, the first being Norwegian
Wenche Myhre
in 1968 with "Ein Hoch der Liebe
" and the third Danish
Gitte Hænning
with "Junger Tag
in 1973. Malmkvist had previously also represented her native Sweden in the 1960 Contest
with "Alla andra får varann
".
song. It is addressed to a porcelain
figure on a clock, who is asked why she is alone and has to pass through life without a lover. The singer tells that music is the life of the Primaballerina and that she just keeps turning to chimes. Nevertheless, in the final chorus she says that one day everything beautiful will fade and that the porcelaine figure will never understand that.
Alles Schöne dieser Welt, das muss einmal vergehn
Primaballerina, Primaballerina
Kleine Porzellanfigur, das wirst du nie verstehn
Everything beautiful of this world has to fade one day
Primaballerina, Primaballerina
Little porcelaine figurette, you will never understand that
with “Aber die Liebe bleibt bestehn” and preceding Rex Gildo
with “Festival der jungen Liebe” and first in the second round of voting with only three songs remaining. In the final round, the song was awarded seven out of 13 possible points sending the song to the Eurovision Song Contest in Madrid.
's Kirsti Sparboe
with "Oj, oj, oj, så glad jeg skal bli
" and preceding France
's Frida Boccara
with "Un jour, un enfant
"). At the close of voting, it had received 8 points, placing 9th in a field of 16. It was succeeded as German representative
at the 1970 Contest
by Katja Ebstein
with "Wunder gibt es immer wieder
".
” in 1962
and the second most successful one overall at the time of its release. The song later appeared on various Siw Malmkvist greatest hits compilations and on German Eurovision Song Contest compilations.
1969 in music
-Events:Perhaps the two most famous musical events of 1969 were concerts. At a Rolling Stones concert in Altamont, California, a fan was stabbed to death by Hells Angels, a biker gang that had been hired to provide security for the event...
song performed by Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
singer Siw Malmkvist
Siw Malmkvist
Siw "Siwan" Gunnel Margareta Malmkvist is a Swedish singer who is popular in Scandinavia and Germany...
and written by Hans Blum
Hans Blum
Hans Blum was a German journalist and writer.-Biography:Born Johann Georg Maximillian Blum, he was a son of Robert Blum, and was educated in the universities of Leipzig and Bern, sat in the North German Reichstag 1867-70, and was a barrister in Leipzig 1869-1897...
. It was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1969
Eurovision Song Contest 1969
The Eurovision Song Contest 1969 was the 14th in the series. It was the first time that the contest resulted in a tie for first place, with four countries each gaining 18 votes. Since there was at the time no rule to cover such an eventuality, all four countries were declared joint winners...
. Malmkvist was the second of three female Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n schlager
Schlager
Schlager music is a style of popular music prevalent in Central and Northern Europe and the Balkans and also in France and Poland. In Portugal, it was adapted and became pimba music...
artists to represent Germany in the Contest in the late 60s and early 70s, the first being Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
Wenche Myhre
Wenche Myhre
Wenche Synnøve Myhre , in some countries known as Wencke Myhre, is a Norwegian singer and actress who has had a great number of hit songs since the 1960s in the Norwegian, German as well as the Swedish markets and languages.She got her first recording contract with composer and producer Arne...
in 1968 with "Ein Hoch der Liebe
Ein Hoch Der Liebe
"Ein Hoch der Liebe" was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1968, performed in German by Norwegian singer Wencke Myhre...
" and the third Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
Gitte Hænning
Gitte Hænning
Gitte Hænning is a Danish singer and film actress, who rose to fame as a child star in the 1950s.Because her name was relatively unique, she was known primarily without a surname in Europe. She moved to Sweden in 1958. Her first hit in Swedish was "Tror du jag ljuger" from 1961...
with "Junger Tag
Junger Tag
Junger Tag was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1973, performed in German by Danish singer Gitte Hænning...
in 1973. Malmkvist had previously also represented her native Sweden in the 1960 Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1960
The Eurovision Song Contest 1960 was the fifth in the series, and was held on 29 March 1960 in London. France's win this year was their second in the contest....
with "Alla andra får varann
Alla andra får varann
"Alla andra får varann" is a song by Swedish singer Siw Malmkvist, that represented Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest 1960, performed in Swedish....
".
Song information
"Primaballerina" is a midtempo schlagerSchlager
Schlager music is a style of popular music prevalent in Central and Northern Europe and the Balkans and also in France and Poland. In Portugal, it was adapted and became pimba music...
song. It is addressed to a porcelain
Porcelain
Porcelain is a ceramic material made by heating raw materials, generally including clay in the form of kaolin, in a kiln to temperatures between and...
figure on a clock, who is asked why she is alone and has to pass through life without a lover. The singer tells that music is the life of the Primaballerina and that she just keeps turning to chimes. Nevertheless, in the final chorus she says that one day everything beautiful will fade and that the porcelaine figure will never understand that.
German
Primaballerina, PrimaballerinaAlles Schöne dieser Welt, das muss einmal vergehn
Primaballerina, Primaballerina
Kleine Porzellanfigur, das wirst du nie verstehn
English translation
Primaballerina, PrimaballerinaEverything beautiful of this world has to fade one day
Primaballerina, Primaballerina
Little porcelaine figurette, you will never understand that
At the national final
Three singers took part in the German national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 1969, each of them performing three songs. It was the third song performed by Siw Malmkvist and the seventh song performed overall in the first round of voting following Peggy MarchPeggy March
Peggy March is an American pop singer. She is primarily remembered for her 1963 million-selling song "I Will Follow Him".-Career:...
with “Aber die Liebe bleibt bestehn” and preceding Rex Gildo
Rex Gildo
Rex Gildo was a German singer of Schlager ballads who reached the height of his popularity in the 1960s and 1970s, selling over 25 million records and starring in film and television roles....
with “Festival der jungen Liebe” and first in the second round of voting with only three songs remaining. In the final round, the song was awarded seven out of 13 possible points sending the song to the Eurovision Song Contest in Madrid.
At the Eurovision Song Contest
The song was performed thirteenth on the night (following NorwayNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
's Kirsti Sparboe
Kirsti Sparboe
Kirsti Sparboe was born on 7 December 1946 in Tromsø, Norway. She Is a musical performer, and an actress. Most of her musical career is based around the widely popular Eurovision Song Contest....
with "Oj, oj, oj, så glad jeg skal bli
Oj, oj, oj, så glad jeg skal bli
"Oj, oj, oj, så glad jeg skal bli" was the Norwegian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1969, performed in Norwegian by Kirsti Sparboe....
" and preceding France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
's Frida Boccara
Frida Boccara
Frida Boccara was a French singer.Frida Boccara was born in Casablanca, Morocco. She submitted the song "Autrefois" to the French Eurovision Song Contest selection panel in 1964 but she was unsuccessful...
with "Un jour, un enfant
Un Jour, Un Enfant
"Un jour, un enfant" was one of four winning songs in the Eurovision Song Contest 1969, this one being sung in French by Frida Boccara representing France...
"). At the close of voting, it had received 8 points, placing 9th in a field of 16. It was succeeded as German representative
Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest
Germany has participated in every Eurovision Song Contest since its beginning in 1956, although its entry in 1996 did not qualify past the pre‐selection round, and therefore was not seen in the broadcast final. No other country has been represented as often. France and the United Kingdom come in a...
at the 1970 Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1970
The Eurovision Song Contest 1970 was the 15th Eurovision Song Contest, held on 21 March 1970 at the RAI Congrescentrum in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Amsterdam contest is regarded as one of the most significant in Eurovision history for a number of reasons....
by Katja Ebstein
Katja Ebstein
Karin Witkiewicz, also known as Katja Ebstein, is a German singer. She was born in Girlachsdorf . She achieved success with songs such as Theater or Es war einmal ein Jäger. She was married to Christian Bruhn, who wrote many of her songs. She represented Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest...
with "Wunder gibt es immer wieder
Wunder Gibt Es Immer Wieder
Wunder gibt es immer wieder was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1970, performed in German by Katja Ebstein....
".
Other versions by Siw Malmkvist
Siw Malkvist has recorded another two versions of the song: in her native language Swedish and in Spanish. The title was kept for both versions.Cover versions
Many cover versions of the song were recorded:- Estonian singer Heli Lääts covered the song as “Kaunid Baleriinid” in Estonian. A dance remix of that version was also released.
- Two Dutch singers recorded Dutch versions of the song: Imca Marina and Patricia Dee.
- Finnish singer Robin covered the song in Finnish as “Prinsessa”.
- Paul MauriatPaul MauriatPaul Mauriat was a French orchestra leader, specializing in light music. He is best known in the United States for his million selling remake of André Popp's "Love is Blue", which was #1 for 5 weeks in 1968...
recorded an instrumental version of the song.
Releases and commercial success
The song was released on a vinyl single with the song “Mir fehlt der Knopf am Pyjama” as B-Side. The song entered the German single charts and eventually peaked at #13. It is Siw Malkvists third last charted single today. It was the most successful German Eurovision Song Contest entry since “Zwei kleine ItalienerZwei Kleine Italiener
"Zwei kleine Italiener" was the German entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1962, performed in German by Conny Froboess....
” in 1962
Eurovision Song Contest 1962
The Eurovision Song Contest 1962 was the seventh in the series. France's win was their third and marked the first time a country had won three contests. Austria, Belgium, Netherlands, and Spain all scored "null points" for the first time....
and the second most successful one overall at the time of its release. The song later appeared on various Siw Malmkvist greatest hits compilations and on German Eurovision Song Contest compilations.