Notes

After 2020 let us down, 2021 will definitely be a year of high notes. Israel's entrant Eden Alene will make sure of that, as her song "Set Me Free" features the highest note in the contest's history. After verifying that Eden's B6 whistle note does in fact break the all-time record, we decided to take a look at the top ten highest notes ever sung at Eurovision.

Top 10 Highest Notes in Eurovision History

Disclaimer: We've gone through many entries to compile this list, but it's still likely non-exhaustive. If we left out a note high enough to be on this list, let us know in the comments!

Honourable mentions

There are a few impressive high notes in the fifth octave that didn't make the cut but deserve a mention.

To name a few: Ruth Lorenzo's "Dancing in the Rain" (Spain 2014; E5), Jamala's "1944" (Ukraine 2016; E5, highest note for a Eurovision winner), OVI and Paula Seling's "Playing with Fire" and "Miracle" (Romania 2010, 2014; E5 and D5 respectively), Justyna's "Sama" (Poland 1995, E5), Pastora Soler's "Quédate Conmigo" (Spain 2012; C#5), Malena Ernman's "La Voix" (Sweden 2009, C5) and Tina Karol's "Show Me Your Love" (Ukraine 2006, B5).

10th: Rona Nishliu - Suus (Albania 2012)

Note: F5
Timestamp: 2:25

Seeing that Rona Nishliu only placed tenth on this list may come as a surprise to some of you. That is because her high notes in the part leading up to the final chorus, which she sings with her modal register, have a strong, whistle note-like clarity. She hits long Bb4, Db5, C5 and Eb5 notes, before briefly hitting a calculated F5. Her emotional singing earned her a place in the top five — which Albania has yet to top.

9th: Robin Stjernberg - You (Sweden 2013)

Note: Gb5
Timestamp: 2:51

When Sweden's 2013 representative Robin Stjernberg comes up as part of a fun fact, it's usually that he's the only person to qualify to the Melodifestivalen final through Andra Chansen and go on to win. However, another and more refreshing fun fact is that when he belted out his high note in 2013, he broke the record for the highest note ever sung by a man at Eurovision. He held this record for several years, with a commendable Gb5.

8th: Monica Aspelund - Lapponia (Finland 1977)

Note: G5
Timestamp: 2:10

Now it's time for an oldie! Finland's 10th-placer from London 1977 featured the highest note of its decade, a G5. Despite not being completely stable, Monica Aspelund showed great ability managing to reach this note. This helped her achieve an uncommon top ten result for her country, including the Irish douze points.

T-6th: Julie & Ludwig - On Again ... Off Again (Malta 2004)

Note: A5
Timestamp: 2:39

Perhaps one of the less cherished entries on this list, Malta placed 12th in 2004 with this operatic duet. The last minute of their song is rather unusual, with Ludwig singing the refrain while Julie tests out her higher range. The highest note she hits is an A5, which places her 6th on this list (alongside one of Eurovision's most iconic vocalists of all time).

T-6th: Kaliopi - Crno i belo & Dona (North Macedonia 2012, 2016)

Note: A5
Timestamp: 2:26

In 2012, Kaliopi represented the Balkan nation of North Macedonia with the hard rock banger "Crno i belo". Just over two minutes into the song, she gave the crowd the fiercest of looks and let out one of her signature screams. Her stable and pitch-perfect A5 left the fans craving for more...

Note: A5
Timestamp: 3:04

...and she delivered. Four years after "Crno i belo", the Macedonian queen took to Stockholm the ridiculously challenging "Dona". At the end of her performance, she reprised her famous A5 note that took her to 13th place in 2012. This time it wasn't enough for the Balkan nation to qualify, but the woman sure left a mark on the contest!

T-4th: Maja Blagdan - Sveta ljubav (Croatia 1996)

Note: Bb5
Timestamp: 1:06 and 3:02

When Copenhagen hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2014, they premiered a segment titled Eurovision Book of Records. They took a took a trip down memory lane, looking back at the records of the song contest. At the time, the highest note record was held by Maja Blagdan. She represented Croatia in 1996, giving the nation its best result (4th) and the contest its highest note (Bb5) of all time. The result record still stands, while the note record has been broken.

T-4th: Eugent Bushpepa - Mall (Albania 2018)

Note: Bb5
Timestamp: 2:59

2018 was a strong year for wildly high vocals (for more than one reason, but we'll get to that). Eugent Bushpepa decided to wow the fans with some adventurous notes that weren't on the original track. The live performance was filled with notes that exhibited Bushpepa's talent, with the highest one coming in the final line of the song. The Albanian rockstar briefly hit a Bb5 before toning it back down, equalling Maja Blagdan. This is (easily) the highest note ever sung by a male performer at Eurovision.

3. Kate Miller-Heidke - Zero Gravity (Australia 2019)

Note: C#6
Timestamp: 2:12

In 2019, Australia's representative was classically trained popera queen Kate Miller-Heidke. For people who are familiar with the singer's past work, it should come as no surprise that she can go very high. Just before the final chorus of her Eurovision entry, the Marcel Bezençon Award winner hit an impressive, glass-shattering C#6.

2. Elina Nechayeva - La forza (Estonia 2018)

Note: F6
Timestamp: 3:04

The Eurovision Book of Records may have credited "Sveta ljubav" as the record holder, but for the past three years Elina Nechayeva was the true queen of high notes. A trained opera singer, Estonia's 2018 entrant sang her entire song very high up the keyboard. The highest note in this stunning popera piece was its final one — a stunning F6. "La forza" was the first entry ever to reach the rare sixth octave.

1. Eden Alene - Set Me Free (Israel 2021)

Note: B6
Timestamp: 2:50

Three years after Elina Nechayeva's operatic ending, Israel's Eden Alene took matters into her own hands. Having already shown off her unusually wide vocal range in her 2020 NF entry "Savior in the Sound", she stepped things up in 2021 with the final chorus of her Eurovision entry "Set Me Free". The chorus, which initially included a key-change, now features impressive whistle notes. The highest of those is a B6 — three notes higher than Elina reached in Lisbon. Mariah Carey, look out!