Moment of Silence (song)

"Moment of Silence" is a song recorded by Romanian singer Ovidiu Anton. It was written and composed by himself, while production was handled by Liviu Sorescu. A gothic-inspired pop rock track featuring an electric guitar solo throughout, "Moment of Silence" acts as a homage to the victims of the 2015 Colectiv nightclub fire. It received mixed reviews from music critics, with one likening it to the works of Swedish band Europe. At the 2017 Radio România Actualități Awards, the track won in the Best Pop Rock Song category.

"Moment of Silence"
Song by Ovidiu Anton
Released2016
GenrePop rock
Length2:59[1]
Songwriter(s)Ovidiu Anton
Producer(s)Liviu Sorescu
Eurovision Song Contest 2016 entry
Country
Artist(s)
Languages
Composer(s)
Ovidiu Anton
Lyricist(s)
Ovidiu Anton
Finals performance
Semi-final result
Disqualified
Entry chronology
◄ "De la capăt" (2015)   
"Yodel It!" (2017) ►

Winning the Romanian pre-selection show Selecția Națională, "Moment of Silence" was selected to represent the country at the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 in Stockholm, Sweden. However, Romania was forced to withdraw from the contest due to defaulted payments by the nation's broadcaster, TVR. Anton had promoted his intended Eurovision participation with live performances in Amsterdam and London, as well as on native Românii au talent. On 14 July 2016, "Moment of Silence" was digitally released as a single through Roton. It also received a music video, which was uploaded onto the label's YouTube channel the day prior.

Background and reception

Premiered on his YouTube channel on 8 February 2016,[2] "Moment of Silence" was written and composed by Ovidiu Anton, while production was handled by Liviu Sorescu.[3] Although withdrawn from the Eurovision Song Contest 2016, it was featured on the contest's official compilation, Eurovision Song Contest: Stockholm 2016, released on 15 April 2016.[1] "Moment of Silence" is a "song of the soul, for the souls", acting as a homage to the victims of the 2015 Colectiv nightclub fire.[4] A gothic-inspired pop rock track,[5][6] it contains an electric guitar solo throughout.[7]

"Moment of Silence" received mixed reviews from music critics. In a Wiwibloggs review containing several reviews from individual critics, the song received praise for its cohesivity and anthemic nature, as well as for Anton's emotional vocal delivery, but was criticized for the lack of connection it creates with the listener. Overall, the reviewers on the website gave the song 5.55 out of 10 points.[7] A Eurovision.de writer likened "Moment of Silence" to the works of Swedish band Europe.[8] At the 2017 Radio România Actualități Awards, the track won Best Pop Rock Song, while receiving a nomination for Song of the Year.[9]

Eurovision attempt and promotion
Main article: Romania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016

The Romanian Television (TVR) opened a submission period for artists and composers to submit their entries between 8 and 10 February 2016 to the Selecția Națională, in order to select their entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2016.[10] A jury panel made up of music professionals rated all songs, revealing their 12 finalists on 11 February.[11][12] During the contest's semi-final held on 4 March, Anton qualified for the final in first place, gaining 54 points from the jury. On the latter occasion two days later, he was chosen to represent Romania at Eurovision, with 6,585 televotes.[13][14] During Anton's performance, he was accompanied by a sword dancer and several backing vocalists—including singer Teodora Dinu.[15][16] Irving Wolther of Eurovision.de applauded the singer's vocals, but deemed his show as "lifeless".[5]

Romania was originally planned to perform in the contest's second semi-final, but was eventually forced to withdraw. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) announced on 22 April 2016 that TVR had repeatedly failed to pay debts totalling CHF 16 million (€14.56 million) by 20 April, the deadline set by the EBU. TVR's failure to repay their debts resulted in their withdrawal from the EBU, and consequently Romania's withdrawal from the contest.[17] This led to strong reactions against the decision, including from Anton.[18][19] He was eventually invited by Moldova's TeleRadio-Moldova (TRM) to accompany their entrant Lidia Isac on the Eurovision stage, with the intent of singing "Falling Stars" as a duet, but he declined the offer.[20]

In order to promote Anton's intended Eurovision participation, he had performed "Moment of Silence" at Eurovision In Concert in Amsterdam,[21] as well as at the London Eurovision event in London in April 2016.[22] He also appeared on the third semi-final of the sixth season of Românii au talent in May.[23] Other performances of "Moment of Silence" include at the Selecția Națională 2017,[24] and at the 2018 Golden Stag Festival,[25] during which he acted as the representative for Romania.[26]

Anton version
"Moment of Silence"
Single by Anton
Released14 July 2016
GenrePop rock
Length3:02
LabelRoton
Songwriter(s)Ovidiu Anton
Producer(s)Liviu Sorescu
Anton singles chronology
"Suntem brazi"
(2017)		 "Moment of Silence"
(2016)		 "Amintirea ta"
(2018)

"Moment of Silence" was eventually released as a single by Ovidiu Anton as part of his band Anton, consisting of him on vocals, alongside Cristi Gram, Fernando Drăgănici, Dani Vlad and Liviu Sorescu on instruments.[26] It was made available for digital download on 14 July 2016 by Roton.[27] In comparison to the original recording, the single version was remastered, opting for a more rock sound, and has the guitar played by Gram in the foreground.[28] An accompanying music video was uploaded onto Roton's YouTube channel on 13 July 2016,[29] featuring Anton performing the track in a "deserted attic".[28]

Track listing
  • Digital download[27]
  1. "Moment of Silence" – 3:02

Release history
Territory Date Format(s) Label
Romania[27] 14 July 2016 Digital download Roton

References
  1. "Eurovision Song Contest 2016 Stockholm by Various Artists on iTunes". iTunes Store. Archived from the original on 2016-04-17. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  2. "Ovidiu Anton – Moment Of Silence (Eurovision 2016)". YouTube. 8 February 2016. Archived from the original on 2017-10-17. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  3. Bejan, Anca (15 March 2016). "Ovidiu Anton: "Avem nevoie de sponsori ca să ne putem promova"" [Ovidiu Anton: "We need sponsors to promote ourselves"]. Click! (in Romanian). Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  4. Marica, Irina (7 March 2016). "Who will represent Romania at the 2016 Eurovision?". Romania Insider. Archived from the original on 2016-05-29. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  5. "Ovidiu Anton: Gothich rock song for Romania" (in German). Wolther, Irving. 8 March 2016. Archived from the original on 2017-02-05. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  6. "Romania: First country to ever be kicked out of Eurovision". PinkNews. 22 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2017-12-15. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  7. Honciuc, Bogdan (29 February 2016). "Wiwi Jury: Romania's Ovidiu Anton with "Moment of Silence"". Wiwibloggs. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  8. "Rumänien: Ovidiu Anton - "Moment Of Silence"" [Romania: Ovidiu Anton – Moment of Silence] (in German). Eurovision.de. ARD. Archived from the original on 2016-04-21. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  9. Constanda, Alexandra (25 April 2017). "Câştigători Premiile Muzicale Radio România 2017: cine sunt cei mai buni artişti şi cele mai bune piese" [2017 Radio România Awards: who are the best artists and songs]. Adevărul (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 2018-05-25. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  10. "Încep înscrierile pentru Eurovision 2016" [Submissions begin for the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 national selection] (in Romanian). TVR. 15 January 2016. Archived from the original on 19 January 2016. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  11. "Eurovision 2016 Regulament privind Selecția Națională" [Selecția Națională rules] (PDF) (in Romanian). TVR. 15 January 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 January 2016. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  12. "TVR a anunțat cele 12 piese calificate la Selecția Națională" [TVR has announced the 12 entries qualified for the Selecția Națională] (in Romanian). TVR. 11 February 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-02-14. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
  13. Ștefan, Carmen (4 March 2016). "Ei sunt cei șase finaliști la Eurovision România 2016 – Totul despre semifinală" [They are the six finalists for the Romanian national selection – All about the semi-final]. Click! (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 2016-04-10. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  14. Leon, Jakov (6 March 2016). "Ovidiu Anton wins Selecţia Naţionala in Romania!". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 2018-05-13. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  15. Morton, Elise (10 May 2016). "On song: 10 new east Eurovision hopefuls every self-respecting fan should know about". The Calvert Journal. Archived from the original on 2017-11-17. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  16. Solomon, Tatiana (10 March 2016). "Ovidiu Anton plăteşte scump victoria de la Eurovision România" [Ovidiu Anton 'pays' for his victory at Eurovision Romania]. Click! (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 6 February 2017. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
  17. "TVR (Romania) no longer entitled to take part in Eurovision 2016". European Broadcasting Union. 22 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2018-11-16. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  18. Albinsson, Mathilde (22 April 2016). "Efter uteslutningen av Rumänien i Eurovision – nu rasar fansen" [After the Romanian disqualification – the fans are raging] (in Swedish). Sveriges Television. Archived from the original on 24 April 2016. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  19. Arvunescu, Victor (15 May 2016). "Ovidiu Anton, despre rezultatul Eurovision 2016: „Dacă nu eşti controversat, nu exişti în showbiz"" [Ovidiu Anton, about Eurovision 2016: "If you don't have controversy, you don't exist"]. Adevărul (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 2017-09-03. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  20. Honciuc, Bogdan (25 April 2016). "Ovidiu Anton declines Moldova's invitation to perform with Lidia Isac at Eurovision". Wiwibloggs. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  21. "Ovidiu Anton Romania 2016 "Moment of Silence" Live at Eurovision in Concert". YouTube. 9 April 2016. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  22. "ESCKAZ in London: Ovidiu Anton (Romania) - Moment of Silence (at London Eurovision)". YouTube. 17 April 2016. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  23. Costache, Alina (13 May 2016). "Andra şi-a lăsat fanii fără răsuflare" [Andra left her fans breatheless] (in Romanian). Romania TV. Archived from the original on 2018-12-20. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  24. Cojan, Liliana (13 January 2017). "Ovidiu Anton a făcut pace cu TVR" [Ovidiu Anton has reconciled with TVR]. Evenimentul Zilei (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 2017-01-14. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  25. "Ovidiu Anton - Moment of Silence (Live @ Golden Stag 2018)". YouTube. 1 September 2018. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  26. Chirilă, Raluca (22 August 2018). "Cine reprezintă România la Cerbul de Aur 2018?" [Who represents Romania at the Golden Stag 2018?] (in Romanian). InfoMusic. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  27. "Moment of Silence – Single by Anton on iTunes". iTunes Store. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  28. Constanda, Alexandra (14 July 2016). "Ovidiu Anton şi trupa sa au lansat videoclipul oficial „Moment of Silence", piesa ce ar fi trebuit să reprezinte România la Eurovision 2016" [Ovidiu Anton and his band have released the music video to "Moment of Silence", the song that was intended to represent Romania at Euroision 2016]. Adevărul. Archived from the original on 2016-10-23. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  29. "Anton – Moment Of Silence (Official Video)". YouTube. 13 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2017-08-14. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
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