Songfestival 1988
| Songfestival 1988 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Dates | |
| Final | 20 August 1988 |
| Host | |
| Venue | Sàle Olympien Mariensbourg, Dentricia |
| Presenter(s) | Ossuàlte Roužë |
| Directed by | Kenn Schmidt |
| Executive supervisor | Naomi Theiner |
| Executive producer | Jacques Gachet |
| Host broadcaster | Résë Públie Déntroîse (RPD) |
| Participants | |
| Number of entries | 13 |
| Debuting countries | |
| Returning countries |  North Borneo |
| Vote | |
| Voting system | Each country awarded 8, 6-1 points to their 7 favourite songs. |
| Winning song |  Andlin"Randez-vous" |
Songfestival 1988 (French: Festival de la Chanson 1988) was the 28th edition of the Songfestival contest, held on 20 August 1988 in Mariensbourg, Dentricia. It was organised by the National Radio-Television Council (CNRT) and Résë Públie Déntroîse (RPD), who agreed to take over hosting duties after previous winners Radiotelyvisut Areanos (RTA) refused to host. The contest was held at the Sàle Olympien on 20 August 1988 and was hosted by Dentrician actor Ossuàlte Roužë. The participation cap, which limited the contest to 9 entries, was removed and 13 countries took part in the contest. It was the largest contest to date at the time of its broadcast.
The 1988 contest was the fifth hosting of Dentricia and the third hosting of Mariensbourg, as the city had previously hosted the contest in 1958 and 1980. It also marked the first time the contest was broadcast live outside Carrelie, with viewers in Yugoslavia, North Alezia, and Finland being able to watch the contest for the first time.
Seaforthe, Silesia, and Voivony all entered the contest for the first time in 1988. Seaforthe had first expressed interest in the contest after its return in 1965, though GBI was discouraged from entering due after the 1968 coup. Silesia and Voivony both expressed interest in participating in 1987, though were barred from doing so due to the participation cap.
The winner was Andlin with the song "Randez-vous", performed by Marie Keier, with lyrics by Konstantyn Papuga. "Randez-vous" became the first Lechian song to win the contest. Efyre placed second for the first time, scoring their best result since 1967.
Location
Following their victory in the 1987 contest, the CNRT asked RTA to host the 1988. However, RTA refused to present a host venue as their executive argued that hosting a second contest in a row would be too expensive. Therefore, the CNRT turned to second-placers Dentricia to host the festival. Dentricia had previously hosted the contest in 1955, 1958, 1974, 1977, and 1980.
The 1988 contest was the first to feature a formal bidding period, though the decisions made were kept private. Authorities in Densmouth, Ceile, Ervèdén, and Mariensbourg bidded to host the contest, with Mariensbourg being announced as the host city on 12 November 1987.
The Sàle Olympien was selected to host the 1988 contest. The venue was originally constructed to host gymnastics events at the 1972 Summer Olympics, which Carrelie hosted. It was the largest venue to host the contest at the time, with a capacity of 10,000. However, the removal of some seats for commentary booths and a larger stage meant the functional capacity was closer to 9,300. Other venues within the city were reportedly considered, including 1980 host venue Sàle Maddébourg.