A very happy, healthy and prosperous 2009!

The first big happening of 2009 in the world of Eurovision will undoubly be the live broadcast of the internationally popular New Year’s Day concert from the Musikverein Concert Hall in Vienna. It is the most watched annual classical music concert on TV, and will be broadcast throughout Europe via the Eurovision Network. The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra worked closely with the EBU to produce a new high quality recording of the instantly recognizable Eurovision signature tune, Te Deum, by Marc Antoine Charpentier, which will signal the beginning of the New Year’s concert. Have a look at your TV guide to see if and where the concert will be aired in your territory. The programme starts at 11:00 CET.

Then, on the 12th of January, the Eurovision TV Interactive Unit launches a brand new version of Eurovision.tv! Behind the scenes, your Eurovision Song Contest web team is working hard to finalize the new site in time.

2009 will be the year of the 54th Eurovision Song Contest, taking place in Moscow, the 7th Junior Eurovision Song Contest from Kyiv and the 3rd Eurovision Dance Contest from soon-to-be-revealed location! It will also be the year that the EBU will give a look in its official Eurovision Song Contest archive by making exclusive materials available online. Without doubt, fans of the contest are looking forward to find out how the new Final format, featuring a 50% influence of professional juries, will work out. The fan websites will continue the friendly battle for the scoop, while we will bring you the exclusive news from behind the scenes. Above all, the Eurovision Family of Events grants you over 10 hours of high-quality live television, which we hope you will enjoy Europe's favorite TV-shows like never before!

Wherever you are, and whatever you do, we wish you a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year, full of joy, music and dance!

The Eurovision Family of Events team