European Songbook

It was voted the best Spanish pop song ever written: Mediterráneo. For Javier Gomá Lanzón the feelings evoked by this song changed over time - as did the message it carries regarding the EU.

We Europeans have come a long way. Our memories and dreams are fragmented and sometimes contradictory, but within this diversity, there is a depth of shared experience. During a overnight coach journey to Berlin Géraldine Schwarz listens to the song The Wall by Pink Floyd.
 

Knud Romer grew up in the dark Danish province during the Cold War. His only window to Europe: the radio. Between marching music, news and espionage codes, one song stood out and opened up a new perspective for him.
 

Árpád Kun chose the song Don Juan by the French singer-songwriter Georges Brassens, which for him stands for deviation from norms, for freedom and independence.

Mia Gallagher reflects with David Bowie’s "Heroes"  on the past and present of Europe - and on the possibility of heroism today.
 

Author and dramaturge Ivana Sajko sees "Complicated Game" as a song about the senselessness of decisions, which at the same time makes an appeal to us all. 

For André Wilkens "Should I stay or should I go" is the soundtrack for Brexit. In his contribution to the European Songbook, the director of the European Cultural Foundation pleads above all for one thing: Let's remain friends.

Europe’s beauty springs from the spikes, the trauma and the memory that every country carries, finds Mata Kastrisiou, and introduces this allegorical song.

Whenever Pavel Klusák hears the song "The Electrician", he wanders in a space between two borders. At this place he finds dark secrets but also clear messages: And these are the ones he longs for most.

Quinsy Gario had a hard time choosing his song. With „Zwarte Licht" he decided on a strong song, which highlights the expectations of black men.
 

Inspired by the British capital, Sol Heilo wrote „London is Trouble" on her tour through Europe. With the song the Norwegian singer shows that that the bad times are as much a part of life as the good ones.
 

„A Song for Europe" already creates a very majestic atmosphere with its title, but many interpret a heavy melancholy in the song. For Vladimir Arsenijevic that is just a question of perspective.

To this day, this song gives me so much positive energy, says Johan Gijsen, when he thinks of the song "The Load-Out / Stay". A song about traveling and the freedom in Europe.
 

Saxophonist Villu Veski looks back at hymns and their creators and what they reveal about European cultural traditions.