Switzerland was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1983 with the song "Io così non ci sto", composed by Thomas Gonzenbach and Remo Kessler, with lyrics by Nella Martinetti, and performed by Mariella Farré. The Swiss participating broadcaster, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR), selected its entry for the contest through a national final.

Before Eurovision

Concours Eurovision de la Chanson 1983

The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR) held a national final to select its entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 1983. The broadcaster received 176 total song submissions (101 in German, 46 in French, and 29 in Italian), and initially selected nine to take part in the selection (three per language).[1][2] Among the participants were Mariella Farré— who would later represent Switzerland in 1985 and Daniela Simons, who would later represent Switzerland in 1986.

Swiss German and Romansh broadcaster Schweizer Fernsehen der deutschen und rätoromanischen Schweiz (SF DRS) staged the national final at its studios in Zurich. It was hosted by Marie-Thérèse Gwerder, with Hans Moeckel [de] and Peter Jacques [de] accompanying the performances with Moeckel's Big Band. Nicole— who won Eurovision for Germany in 1982 and Vivian Reed made guest appearances. The national final was broadcast on TV DRS and TSR (with commentary by Serge Moisson [fr]).[3][4]

Participating entries[1][2][5]
R/O Artist(s) Song Songwriter(s) Language
Composer Lyricist
1 Alexandre Castel "Elle était folle" Alexandre Castel French
2 Manuela Felice "Odulidam" Walter Kehl German
3 Christian Hunziker "D'Änglischüebig" Christian Hunziker German, English
4 Mariella Farré "Io cosí non ci sto"
  • Remo Kessler
  • Thomas Gonzenbach
Nella Martinetti Italian
5 I Centrocittà "Vivo in un mundo" Ferninando Morandi Italian
6 Claude Lander "Il faut juste vivre" Claude Lander French
7 Ray & Corry Knobel "Canzone amara" Corry Knobel Italian
8 Angela "Mona Lisa" Philipp Martin [de] German
9 Daniela Simons "Dis-moi tout" Alexandre Castel 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.[6] Applications for viewers from Switzerland and Liechtenstein to join the regional juries were sent via postcard until 21 March, and 50 viewers from each canton were randomly selected to cast their votes to their broadcaster divisions via phone call.[6] Due to technical difficulties regarding the Swiss-Italian jury, their votes were announced later than scheduled.[5] The winner was the song "Io cosí non ci sto", composed by Remo Kessler and Thomas Gonzenbach with lyrics from Nella Martinetti and performed by Mariella Farré.

Final — 26 March 1983[2][5]
R/O Artist(s) Song Regional Juries Press
Jury
Expert
Jury
Total Place
DRS TSR TSI
1 Alexandre Castel "Elle était folle" 2 3 3 1 7 16 8
2 Manuela Felice "Odulidam" 8 10 7 7 6 38 3
3 Christian Hunziker "D'Änglischüebig" 6 1 2 2 8 19 6
4 Mariella Farré "Io così non ci sto" 7 6 10 10 10 43 1
5 I Centrocittà "Vivo in un mondo" 5 4 6 6 4 25 4
6 Claude Lander "Il faut juste vivre" 4 7 4 4 2 21 5
7 Ray & Corry Knobel "Canzone amara" 3 5 5 5 1 19 6
8 Angela "Mona Lisa" 10 8 8 8 5 39 2
9 Daniela Simons "Dis-moi tout" 1 2 1 3 3 10 9

At Eurovision

At the Eurovision Song Contest 1983, held at the Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle in Munich, the Swiss entry was the eighth entry of the night following Spain and preceding Finland. The Swiss conductor at the contest was Robert Weber. At the close of voting, Switzerland had received 28 points, placing Switzerland in fifteenth place out of twenty entries, the country's worst placing and its first time placing outside of the top 10 since 1974.

Voting

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.

References

  1. ^ a b "20 h. 00 — Concours Eurovision de la chanson: Finale suisse" [20:00 — Eurovision Song Contest: Swiss Final]. Radio TV – Je vois tout (in French). 24 March 1983. p. 21. Retrieved 7 March 2025 – via Scriptorium.
  2. ^ a b c "Schweizer Ausscheidung - Finale Suisse - Finale Svizzera 1983". Vorstadt Music & Records. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
  3. ^ "Fernsehen – Samstag" [Television – Saturday]. Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in German). Zurich, Switzerland. 4 February 1984. p. 47. Retrieved 6 February 2025 – via E-newspaperarchives.ch.
  4. ^ "TV – samedi 26 mars" [TV – Saturday 26 Marc1]. Radio TV – Je vois tout (in French). No. 12. Lausanne, Switzerland. 24 March 1983. p. 18. Retrieved 6 February 2025 – via Scriptorium.
  5. ^ a b c Concours Eurovision đe la Chanson 1983 (Video) (in German). 26 March 1983.
  6. ^ a b "Ein Lied für München" [A Song for Munich]. Der Bund (in German). Vol. 134, no. 57. 9 March 1983. p. 17. Retrieved 7 March 2025 – via E-newspaperarchives.ch.
  7. ^ a b "Results of the Final of Munich 1983". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
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