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Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1977

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Eurovision Song Contest 1977
Participating broadcasterSwiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR)
Country  Switzerland
National selection
Selection processConcours Eurovision de la Chanson
Selection date(s)19 January 1977
Selected artist(s)Pepe Lienhard Band
Selected song"Swiss Lady"
Selected songwriter(s)Peter Reber [de]
Placement
Final result6th, 71 points
Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄1976 1977 1978►

Switzerland was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1977 with the song "Swiss Lady", written by Peter Reber [de], and performed by the Pepe Lienhard Band. The Swiss participating broadcaster, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR), selected its entry for the contest through a national final.

Before Eurovision

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Concours Eurovision de la Chanson

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The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR) held a national final to select its entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 1977. The broadcaster received 110 total song submissions (64 in French, 32 in German, and 14 in Italian), and ultimately selected nine to take part in the selection, with six being performed in French, two in German, and one in Italian.[1][2] Among the participants were Véronique Müller— who represented Switzerland in 1972 —, Piera Martell— who represented Switzerland in 1974 —, and Paola del Medico— who represented Switzerland in 1969 and would repeat in 1980. Carole Vinci [fr] would later represent Switzerland in 1978.

Swiss German and Romansh broadcaster Schweizer Fernsehen der deutschen und rätoromanischen Schweiz (SF DRS) staged the national final on 19 January 1977 at 21:00 CET in Zürich.[1][3] It was presented by Rita Anderman, with Hans Moeckel [de] conducting the orchestra. Peter, Sue and Marc— who represented Switzerland in 1971 and 1976 —, and Brotherhood of Man— who won Eurovision for the United Kingdom in 1976 —, made guest appearances. [1]

Participating entries[1][2]
R/O Artist(s) Song Songwriter(s) Language
Composer Lyricist
1 Sweet People "Viens avec nous" Jean-Jacques Egli French
2 Véronique Müller "Heyho" Véronique Müller French
3 Piera Martell "Aldo Rinaldo" Max Rüeger [de] German
4 Leonia "Passo… vedo" Raphael Gibardi Italian
5 Pepe Lienhard Band "Swiss Lady" Peter Reber [de] German[a]
6 Carole Vinci [fr] "Dites-moi ce qu'est l'amour" Thierry Fervant Bernard Pichon [fr] French
7 Gérald Matthey "Le coeur dans les nuages" Thierry Fervant Bernard Pichon [fr] French
8 Frédérique Sand "Faites la vie" Frank Olivier Hay
  • Alain Penel
  • Edmée Cuttat
French
9 Paola "Le livre blanc"
French

The voting consisted of regional public votes which were sent to the three divisions of SRG SSR (DRS, TSR, TSI: German, French and Italian speaking, respectively), a press jury, and an "expert" jury.[3][4] Applications for viewers to join the regional juries were sent via postcard until 12 January, and 50 viewers from each canton were randomly selected to cast their votes to their broadcaster divisions via phone call.[3] Due to technical difficulties regarding the Swiss-French jury, their votes were announced later than scheduled.[5] The winner was the song "Swiss Lady", written by Peter Reber [de], and performed by the Pepe Lienhard Band.

Final — 19 January 1977[5]
R/O Artist(s) Song Regional Juries Press
Jury
Expert
Jury
Total Place
DRS TSI TSR
1 Sweet People "Viens avec nous" 7 6 7 7 7 34 3
2 Véronique Müller "Heyho" 4 4 3 5 2 18 6
3 Piera Martell "Aldo Rinaldo" 6 5 6 4 5 26 4
4 Leonia "Passo… vedo" 2 7 2 2 4 17 7
5 Pepe Lienhard Band "Swiss Lady" 9 9 9 9 8 44 1
6 Carole Vinci [fr] "Dites-moi ce qu'est l'amour" 5 4 5 6 6 26 4
7 Gérald Matthey "Le coeur dans les nuages" 1 4 4 3 3 15 8
8 Frédérique Sand "Faites la vie" 3 1 1 1 1 7 9
9 Paola "Le livre blanc" 8 8 8 8 9 41 2

At Eurovision

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At the Eurovision Song Contest 1977, held at the Wembley Conference Centre in London, the Swiss entry was the twelfth entry of the night following Israel and preceding Sweden. The Swiss conductor at the contest was Peter Jacques, who previously conducted the 1973 Swiss entry. At the close of voting, Switzerland had received 71 points in total; finishing in sixth place out of eighteen countries.

Voting

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Each participating broadcaster assembled a jury panel with at least eleven members. The jurors awarded 1-8, 10, and 12 points to their top ten songs. Until 1980, the votes were given in the order the awarded songs were performed in, rather than in ascending numerical order.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "19 janvier – TV Mercredi" [19 January – TV Wednesday]. Radio TV – Je vois tout (in French). 13 January 1977. p. 22. Retrieved 23 February 2025 – via Scriptorium.
  2. ^ a b "Schweizer Ausscheidung - Finale Suisse - Finale Svizzera 1977". Vorstadt Music & Records. Retrieved 23 February 2025.
  3. ^ a b c "Votez pour la chanson de votre choix !" [Vote for the song of your choice!]. Journal du Jura (in French). No. 6. 8 January 1977. p. 17. Retrieved 23 February 2025 – via E-newspaperarchives.ch.
  4. ^ "A Voir — Chansons pour l'Eurovision" [Must See — Eurovision Songs]. L'impartial (in French). 19 January 1977. p. 14. Retrieved 23 February 2025 – via E-newspaperarchives.ch.
  5. ^ a b Concours Eurovision de la Chanson (Video) (in German). 19 January 1977.
  6. ^ a b "Results of the Final of London 1977". European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 23 February 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  1. ^ Contains some words in English