Marcha
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{About|the Dutch singer|}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Marcha
| image = Marcha (Marga Bult) at the 1987 Nationaal Songfestival.jpg
| caption = Marcha (Marga Bult) at the 1987 Nationaal Songfestival
| image_size =
| background = solo_singer
| birth_name = Margaretha Hendrika Maria Groeneveld
| alias =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=y|1956|7|2}}
| death_date =
| origin = Lattrop, Netherlands
| instrument =
| genre = Pop
| occupation = Singer
| years_active =
| label =
| associated_acts = Tulip, Babe, Dutch Divas
| website =
| current_members = }}
Marcha (born Margaretha Hendrika Maria Groeneveld on 2 July 1956), also known as Marga Bult, is a Dutch singer and television presenter, who has been a member of the groups Tulip, Babe and Dutch Divas and is also known for her participation in the 1987 Eurovision Song Contest.
Tulip and Babe
In 1979, Marcha joined forces with former Teach-In (band) singer Marianne Wolsink to form the duo Tulip. They had only released two singles however when, in 1981, Marcha was chosen from over 200 candidates as the replacement for the departing lead singer Gemma van Eck in girl group Babe, who had established themselves since 1979 as regular chart performers, with six top 30 singles in the Netherlands. Known as Marga Bult during this time, she recorded two albums and 14 singles with Babe, and toured extensively across Europe and Asia, before the group disbanded in June 1986.
Eurovision
In 1987, as a solo artist, Marcha was chosen by broadcaster NOS to be the Dutch singer for that year's Eurovision Song Contest, and in a selection of six songs, "Rechtop in de wind" ("Upright in the Wind") was chosen by regional juries as the country's entry.{{Cite web|url=http://natfinals.50webs.com/70s_80s/Netherlands1987.html|title=DUTCH NATIONAL FINAL 1987|website=natfinals.50webs.com|accessdate=23 July 2022}} At the 1987 Eurovision, held on 9 May in Brussels, "Rechtop in de wind" finished in joint fifth place of 22 entries.{{Cite web |title=Eurovision Song Contest : Netherlands 1987 : Marcha, Rechtop In De Wind |url=https://www.esc-history.com/details.php?key=0531 |accessdate=23 July 2022 |website=www.esc-history.com}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.diggiloo.net/?1987nl|title=Rechtop in de wind - lyrics - Diggiloo Thrush|website=www.diggiloo.net|accessdate=23 July 2022}}
Later career
In the 1990s Marcha moved into television presenting, working on shows for several Dutch channels. In 2000, she joined fellow Dutch Eurovision veterans Maggie MacNeal and Sandra Reemer to form the Dutch Divas, who quickly established themselves as a popular live act, particularly with the Dutch gay community. Reemer left the group in 2005 and was replaced briefly by another Eurovision performer, Justine Pelmelay, who remained with the group for a year; since then Marcha and MacNeal have continued as a duo.[http://songfestival.web-log.nl/songfestival/2006/02/justine_pelmela.html Report at Songfestival.nl]
In 2010 she still performs as a solo artist. Besides her performances she is also a regular presenter for the regional broadcasting company RTV Oost. In 1996, Marga announced the scores of the Dutch jury at the Eurovision Song Contest staged in Oslo, Norway. In 2012, she recorded a new version of her Eurovision entry Rechtop in De WindArchived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/8j63tIp9znQ Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20131227130033/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8j63tIp9znQ&feature=youtu.be Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8j63tIp9znQ| title = Rechtop in de wind 2012 - Marga Bult (official video) Eurovision songcontest 25th Anniversary | website=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Commonscatinline}}
- {{Official website|http://www.dutch-divas.nl/|Dutch Divas official website}} {{in lang|nl}}
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20091118123500/http://www.popinstituut.nl/encyclopedie/muzikant/marga-bult.824.html Tulip/Babe/Marcha/Dutch Divas Discography]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20071028135407/http://www.dingadong.nl/nsf87/ 1987 page at Dingadong.nl] {{in lang|nl}}
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{{succession box
| before=Frizzle Sizzle
with "Alles heeft ritme"
| title=Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest
| years=1987
| after=Gerard Joling
with "Shangri-La"
}}
{{s-end}}
{{Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest|state=collapsed}}
{{Eurovision Song Contest 1987|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marcha}}