Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1963
Finland was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1963 with the song "Muistojeni laulu", written by Börje Sundgren, and performed by Laila Halme. The Finnish participating broadcaster, Yleisradio (Yle), selected its entry through a national final and, subsequently, the performer internally once the national final was over.
In the national final, held on 14 February 1963, "Muistojeni laulu" was performed once with Marjatta Leppänen and once with Irmeli Mäkelä. After the final Yle organized an extra singing test to find the best vocalist for the song. Laila Halme, who originally had finished third with Tamara Lund in the national final, was chosen as the performer on 19 February 1963.[1]
Before Eurovision
National final
Eight entries were selected for the competition from 200 received submissions. Yleisradio (Yle) held the national final on 14 February 1963 at its studios in Helsinki, hosted by Aarno Walli, Erkki-Mikael, Risto Vanari, and Marion Rung. The eight songs were performed twice, once with a small combo and once with a full orchestra. The winner was chosen by a jury consisting of 40 members.[1][2]
| R/O | Artist 1(Combo) | Artist 2(Orchestra) | Song | Songwriter(s) | Points | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seija Lampila | Rauni Pekkala | "Marraskuu" |
| 279 | 4 |
| 2 | Pärre Förars | Stig Fransman | "Niin kuin ruusu" | Laura Railo | 258 | 8 |
| 3 | Tamara Lund | Laila Halme | "Olen mikä olen" | 298 | 3 | |
| 4 | Lasse Liemola | Matti Heinivaho | "Kristiina ja minä" | 276 | 5 | |
| 5 | Marjatta Leppänen | Irmeli Mäkelä | "Muistojeni laulu" | Börje Sundgren | 331 | 1 |
| 6 | Lasse Mårtenson | Johnny Forsell | "Kaikessa soi blues" |
| 315 | 2 |
| 7 | Maynie Sirén | Tapio Lahtinen | "Malaga" |
| 269 | 7 |
| 8 | Erkki Liikanen | Tuulevi Mattila | "Pimpula vei" | Åke Granholm | 272 | 6 |
At Eurovision
On the night of the final Halme performed 7th in the running order, following Italy and preceding eventual contest winners Denmark. Voting was by each national jury awarding 5-4-3-2-1 to their top five songs, and at the close "Muistojeni laulu" was one of four songs (along with the entries from the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden) which had failed to pick up any points at all, the country's first last place finish. The Finnish jury awarded its 5 points to Denmark.
Voting
Finland did not receive any points at the Eurovision Song Contest 1963.[3]
| Score | Country |
|---|---|
| 5 points |  Denmark |
| 4 points |  Austria |
| 3 points |  United Kingdom |
| 2 points |  Italy |
| 1 point |  Luxembourg |
References
- 12"1963 Euroviisukattilassa kuohui kolmen naisen viisusoppa" (in Finnish). Yle. Archived from the original on 18 June 2003. Retrieved 2 August 2025.
- ↑Murtomäki, Asko (2007). Finland 12 points! Suomen Euroviisut (in Finnish). Helsinki, Finland: Teos. pp. 30–31, 33. ISBN 978-951-851-106-2.
- 12"Results of the Final of London 1963". Eurovision Song Contest. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest
- Countries in the Eurovision Song Contest 1963
- 1963 in Finland