Malta in The Eurovision Song Contest 2009 - GO Malta EuroSong 2009

GO Malta EuroSong 2009

PBS decided on a new format for its national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2009. Maltese songwriters would be allowed to submit up to two songs per singer, though only one singer will be allowed on stage. Submissions were accepted on from 13 October to 14 October 2008 at the PBS offices in G’Mangia. From 23 October to 26 October and 1 November to 2 November, 80 songs were chosen internally for the second phase. In the second phase, the 80 songs would be presented in ten weekly televised shows, titled "Euro Showbox" to be held on 8, 15, 29 November, 6, 13, 20 December and 10 January 2009. A jury will choose 15 entries to move on to the national final, while another five entries will be given a wildcard through televoting. The national final on 7 February will contain 20 songs and a jury will choose three of them to go on to the "super-final", where televoting will determine the winner. The votes given by the juries in the previous round, however, will be kept and tallied along with the televotes. The eventual winner will represent Malta in Moscow. 182 songs were received by PBS, 43 less than last year.

However PBS later changed the format for the show and instead of 80 songs taking part, only 56 out of the 182 songs submitted would be featured in the heats, now reduced from ten to eight. Each of the eight heats will include 7 songs, with the top 20 still going to the final of the contest. After discussions with the Union of Maltese Singers and Songwriters (UKAM), only one song per artist will be allowed in the final of the contest.

15 entries from the 56 have been selected by another jury, which will qualify for the final. Five more songs will be selected by televoting, and all 20 songs that qualify for the final will be announced on the final heat.

Many former Malta Song for Europe contestants entered a song to PBS. The 56 songs that were chosen were revealed on 27 October, with many known names to both Eurovision and The Malta Song for Europe being present once again. Former Maltese entrant Chiara Siracusa, who came second and third for Malta in 2005 and 1998 respectively, entered the contest again. 2008's second and third place artist Claudia Faniello had re-entered, singing as well as writing for other competing artists. Famous German Eurovision composers Ralph Siegel and Bernd Meinunger (under the pseudonynym "John O'Flynn") submitted entries to PBS, which made it through to the semi-finals,the refrain of one of the songs written by them "Innocent Heart" sung by a new face in the festival Ruth Portelli was used in the song Just Get Out of My Life. Famous Maltese songwriting duo Philip Vella and Gerard James Borg,wrote songs together, apart and with other songwriters.