kungshamra71

Official Announcement
 
The opening ceremony will held on Saturday (November 18) at 11:00 AM local time. The Grand Final will be held the following day on Sunday (November 19) starting at 09:00 AM. The team draw will be held on Friday. I willuse a website to assign pairs, and then announce the results (unless anyone else has a better idea).
 
There will be no (or very few) tables and scoreboards used this edition. Nonetheless, I will send juries a themed set of votes to post during the Grand Final. 

Yes, Grand Final and associated events will be delayed until next weekend due to technical issues.

I've encountered an annoying formatting issue that @Sindo @OlympicIRL and I are working to rectify, but due to the short period of time remaining before the scheduled date of the opening ceremony and grand final, it is likely those will need to be pushed back one weekend. I'll provide a more official update tomorrow.

Portugal
 
 
 
Edition: TISC Open 2016
 

 
 
 

Since Halloween is over and its TISC thread she cant be missed here 
 

My second song  is not as sad as the first one. In fact, is quite comic since it’s from South Park. 
 
But it is also quite deep, and if you listen to it carefully, you will realize there the true meaning of the song: we are all going to die, so don’t give too much relevance to things that do not have importance and enjoy all the time you have with those you like, because they will also going to die.
 
“It might happen in a couple months
Or 50 years from now
But no matter when it happens
It will seem too soon to you   So be sure on Christmas Eve
When you snuggle into bed
That you thank God for your family
'Cause someday they'll be dead”      South Park - Dead, dead, dead       

As suggested, I also thought of two songs for this Dia de Los Muertos event.
 
The first one is one of the saddest songs I know, telling the story of a girl who daily takes the train to madrid and falls in love with someone else that also makes the same journey but misses the courage to talk with him, until one day she does that, on a Thursday , at 11 March 2004, where her live changes forever.
 
This song is about all the lives that got lost due to the Islamic terrorist attacks from 11 March 2004 that blew up a bunch of trains in Madrid and kill almost 200 people.
 
The story is based on a Diary that was found at the wreckage of the bombing, who belong to a girl that was writing there how she met a guy on that train trip and how she was enjoying talking with him everyday.
 
Those in the video above are actual survivors and family members of those murdered in the terrorist attacks.
 
 
 
 La Oreja de Van Gogh - Jueves 

And since we can share two halloween musics, and because this song was played in loop in my neighbourhood yesterday (some school kids party happening here in the village), i'll share with you this "scary" dutch catchy song 
 

Not sure from which country this is (france? , maybe usa? , no idea actually) but it's what i came into my mind when i thought about halloween/scary music 
 

My second song  is not as sad as the first one. In fact, is quite comic since it’s from South Park. 
 
But it is also quite deep, and if you listen to it carefully, you will realize there the true meaning of the song: we are all going to die, so don’t give too much relevance to things that do not have importance and enjoy all the time you have with those you like, because they will also going to die.
 
“It might happen in a couple months
Or 50 years from now
But no matter when it happens
It will seem too soon to you   So be sure on Christmas Eve
When you snuggle into bed
That you thank God for your family
'Cause someday they'll be dead”      South Park - Dead, dead, dead       

As suggested, I also thought of two songs for this Dia de Los Muertos event.
 
The first one is one of the saddest songs I know, telling the story of a girl who daily takes the train to madrid and falls in love with someone else that also makes the same journey but misses the courage to talk with him, until one day she does that, on a Thursday , at 11 March 2004, where her live changes forever.
 
This song is about all the lives that got lost due to the Islamic terrorist attacks from 11 March 2004 that blew up a bunch of trains in Madrid and kill almost 200 people.
 
The story is based on a Diary that was found at the wreckage of the bombing, who belong to a girl that was writing there how she met a guy on that train trip and how she was enjoying talking with him everyday.
 
Those in the video above are actual survivors and family members of those murdered in the terrorist attacks.
 
 
 
 La Oreja de Van Gogh - Jueves 

And since we can share two halloween musics, and because this song was played in loop in my neighbourhood yesterday (some school kids party happening here in the village), i'll share with you this "scary" dutch catchy song 
 

Not sure from which country this is (france? , maybe usa? , no idea actually) but it's what i came into my mind when i thought about halloween/scary music 
 

Garlic ice cream?? After 7 years living in the Netherlands I thought I knew everything about terrible food, but I guess not! 😅
 
I guess I’ll bring some sandwiches with me then 

Garlic ice cream?? After 7 years living in the Netherlands I thought I knew everything about terrible food, but I guess not! 😅
 
I guess I’ll bring some sandwiches with me then 

I love the idea, congrats for the initiative! 
 
It's interesting to know about the Dia de Los Muertos at November 1st, because in Portugal November 1st is a different holiday, a religious one called "Day of All Saints", but people end up doing a similar thing: we go to the cemeteries and put flowers in our family members who passed away to honour them, and (those who are religious) go to a christian mass for the same reason (honouring the death).
 
Curious fact:  November 1st is also quite a big date in Portugal history. On this day, in 1755, a huge earthquake happen in the ocean nearby the coast of Portugal, strong enough to make many buildings collapse in Lisbon, and causing a big fire due to all the candles that everyone had in their houses and churches as it used to be a "Day of All Saints" tradition.
 
The fire was so big in the entire city of Lisbon that people end up running to the river to avoid the flames. But, as the earthquake was in the sea, it caused a tsunami that hit Lisbon and killed all those that had escaped to the riverside. The whole disaster killed about 30k people and destroyed completely the center part of Lisbon.

Official Announcement
 
I would like to announce some changes made to the Festival of Music format for this edition. Users will be invited to submit song(s) from their own nation, the host nation, or a non-competing nation that meet the themes as described below.
 
This edition of the contest will take place during a particularly festive time of year in California. There are many minor and major holidays celebrated in the autumn. As part of the cultural exchange of this contest, I'd like to celebrate two of my personal favorites with everyone. Users will be invited to submit a song (or two) for the following celebrations: Halloween and Día de Los Metros. I have provided guidelines for selecting submissions below.
 
Halloween: I'm sure many of you are now familiar with this holiday. Nonetheless, a simple explanation would be that people dress in costumes, traditionally scary or "spooky" creatures like witches, zombies, reapers, skeletons, werewolves etc. Children (and sometimes teenagers who have almost certainly aged out) then engage in "trick or treating" after the sun sets. This involves going from to house to house, asking the owners "trick or treat?" Most owners will offer a treat (candy or homemade goodies) to ward off a trick (prank or mischievous act). People might also carve pumpkins into "jack-o-lanterns" (homemade lanterns created from hollowed out pumpkins), go to a haunted house (a house or building you walk through where people try to scare the shit out of you), or attend costume parties (with candy and drinks supplied, of course.) It is celebrated on October 31st every year, although some festivities make take a place a few days before (parties and haunted houses) if it happens during the work week. In celebration of this holiday, users will be invited to post up to two songs with a scary, haunting, or "dark" theme (or something that explicitly celebrates Halloween) on October 31st. Reminder: You may choose a song by an artist from your own country, the host nation, or a non-competing nation. Please speak up if you have questions.
 
P.S. Users who are familiar with the tradition of Devil's Night are invited to "prank" us by posting an out-of-the-box song on October 30th.
 
Día de Los Muertos: This holiday migrated up the border with Mexico. I'm sure @mrv86 can explain it with much more detail than myself, but essentially, it is a joyful celebration in remembrance of family members and friends who have died. The popular animated film Coco is based on this holiday for those familiar with it. It has become more common to find people celebrating it in California over the last few years, especially on high school or college campuses. In celebration of this holiday, users will be invited to post up to two songs in remembrance of those who have passed away recently and/or long ago on November 1st and 2nd. You may choose song(s) they liked, a song that reminds you of them, or a general remembrance song. Feel free to write a short post explaining your choice. Again, you may choose a song by an artist from your own country, the host nation, or a non-competing nation. Please speak up if you have questions.
 
The schedule on first post of the thread has been amended in line with the new format. Thanks.

I'm pretty sure that's an ironic question but nevertheless, and because i love that dutch tradition, here it is:
 

 
 
P.S - We also have "sint maarten" in Portugal (São Martinho), but we don't sing anything, we just gather around the (usually) good weather, eat some roasted chestnuts and drink wine in what we call "magusto" 
 

@heywoodu I decided against it after realizing one, or potentially more, entries weren't available on Spotify. I would advise creating a playlist if you want one, but there won't be an "official" one since it doesn't seem fair.

See you all in Germany then 
 

See you all in Germany then 
 

See you all in Germany then 
 

Once again, my top 3 was an easy one, and i knew a song would be my 12 from the moment I started listen to it.
 
But I have to say, this is one of my favorite editions ever! The average song quality is really good (for my musical taste of course) 😁

Once again, my top 3 was an easy one, and i knew a song would be my 12 from the moment I started listen to it.
 
But I have to say, this is one of my favorite editions ever! The average song quality is really good (for my musical taste of course) 😁

Once again, my top 3 was an easy one, and i knew a song would be my 12 from the moment I started listen to it.
 
But I have to say, this is one of my favorite editions ever! The average song quality is really good (for my musical taste of course) 😁