Romania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009
participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 in Moscow, Russia. They selected their entry, "The Balkan Girls", by Romanian singer Elena through the national selection competition Selecția Națională 2009 organised by Romanian Television in January 2009. Prior to the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest, Romania competed eleven times since its first entry in 1994. Its highest placing in the contest had been third place, which the nation achieved in 2005. In 2008, Romania finished in 20th place. "The Balkan Girls" attained local commercial success, topping the Romanian Top 100 in April.
The song was promoted by a music video and live performances in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. Romania qualified in ninth place from the contest's first semi-final on 12 May and ultimately reached 19th place in the Grand Final on 16 May, achieving 40 points. This remains one of the country's lowest Eurovision placements. Elena was accompanied by four female dancers and a background singer during her performance. Conceived as a reinterpretation of the Ieles in Romanian mythology, the show was aided by 3D computer graphics of a blooming forest.
Before Eurovision
''Selecția Națională 2009''
Competing entries
organized Selecția Națională 2009, a competition to select their entrant for the Eurovision Song Contest 2009. In early January 2009, the broadcaster published a provisory list of 24 contestants. Out of 177 eligible tracks submitted to TVR from 15 November to 23 December, the entries were chosen on 8 January by a 11-member jury made up of music professionals and media personalities: Zoia Alecu, Sanda Cepraga, Cătălin Crișan, Adrian Despot, Viorel Găvrilă, Mihai Georgescu, Bogdan Miu, George Natsis, George Popa, Răzvan Popescu and Mihai Trăistariu. The submission deadline had been initially set to 15 December, with its extension to attract more entries promopting sources including Gardianul to wrongfully claim that this was because only five songs had been submitted. For the first time, solely Romanian composers were invited to compete in Selecția Națională.| Artist | Song | Songwriter |
| Alexa | "A Girl Like Me" | |
| Alexa | "One Last Night" | Cornel Ilie |
| Blaxy Girls | "Dear Mama" | |
| Cătălin | "Stop" | |
| Dalma | "Love Was Never Her Friend" | Marius Moga |
| DD | "Everyday" | |
| Elena | "" | |
| Ethnic | "" | Dan Lăzărică |
| Costi Ioniță | "Can You Forgive" | |
| Imba | "Round & Round" | |
| Besa Kokëdhima | "Nothing Gonna Change" | Sebastian Badiu |
| "Go On" | ||
| "Don't Leave" | George Hora | |
| Nico and Moni-K | "Disco Maniacs" | |
| "Take the Chance" | Floriana Pachia | |
| "I Feel Your Presence" | ||
| Popas Band | "Strigă" | Marius Popa |
| Red Blonde | "Nu am cu cine" | Marius Moga |
| SoundCheck | "You Are My Love" | Cătălin Huţanu |
| Tabasco | "Purple" | |
| Tina | "Pleacă" | Cornel Ilie |
| "Perdóname" | Ionuț Botea | |
| "Someone Like You" | ||
| Zero | "Sunny Days" |
Shows
Selecția Națională 2009 was divided in two semi-finals on 27 and 29 January, and the final on 31 January. The results in each show of the competition—hosted by Radio 21 hosts Orlando, Escu and Popescu—were determined by a 50/50 combination of votes from a jury panel and a public televote. The six best-ranked entries from each semi-final advanced to the final round. On the latter occasion, Swedish trio Biondo was hired as the interval act. All participants had been promoted by music videos that were broadcast by TVR. The jury that analysed the songs in the final round was made up of Dana Dorian, Liana Elekes, Cristian Faur, Andrei Kerestely, Ștefan Neaftanaila, Marcel Pavel, Aura Urziceanu, George Zafiu and Cristian Zgabercea." alongside Vlad.
competed in the second semi-final with his song "Can You Forgive". Additionally, he composed Imba's "Round & Round"; both advanced.
Promotion
To promote "The Balkan Girls", an accompanying music video was directed by Dragoș Buliga near bridges in Argeș County and at Bucharest's Silver Church Club. It was premiered on 15 March 2009 on TVR1's Danutz S. R. L., and was subsequently uploaded to YouTube the following day. In the same month, an alternative clip was shot for Radio 21's Women's Day campaign. Elena performed "The Balkan Girls" several times prior to Eurovision, including during events in the Netherlands and Belgium. She sang the song at the ITB Berlin in March, was interviewed by the Berlin press and sent the track to local radio and television stations. Furthermore, the singer performed "The Balkan Girls" at the UK Eurovision Preview Party event in the London Scala club, and her Eurovision participation was endorsed by an advertisement of Romanian football manager Gheorghe Hagi.At Eurovision
The Eurovision Song Contest 2009, at the Olympic Indoor Arena in Moscow, consisted of two semi-finals on 12 and 14 May, respectively, and the final on 16 May. According to Eurovision rules, all participating countries except the host and the "Big Four" were required to advance from a semi-final to compete in the final; the top ten countries from each semi-finals progressed to the final. In Romania, the show was broadcast on TVR, with Manoliu as the country's head of delegation. Elena was scheduled for technical rehearsals on 4, 8 and 11 May. She performed 14th in the first semi-final, preceded by North Macedonia and followed by Finland, and sang 22nd in the Grand Final, preceded by Ukraine and followed by the United Kingdom.The concept of Elena's show—directed by Bobo Bărbulescu—was a "modern reinterpretation" of the Ieles, feminine creatures in Romanian mythology. Thus, the four female dancers accompanying the singer onstage wore hair extensions and "shredded mermaid frocks"; Elena sported a flesh-colored dress and high heels. She was also aided by the background vocalist Lucia Dumitrescu. 3D computer graphics were used during the performance, seeing a "mysterious" forest bloom as a sunrise is depicted. The show further made use of a fiberglass-and-polyurethane throne. Alongside Bărbulescu, Oana Draghici was hired as the art director, Ioana Macarie as the choreographer and Matei Ovejad as the special effects supervisor.