The opening music is the prelude to Marc-Antoine Charpentier's Te Deum, adopted as the theme of the Eurovision network and heard before its broadcasts. The Eurovision Song Contest began in 1956 and grew into one of the world's most watched live music events, taking the fanfare far beyond classical concerts. Clips of the intro later circulated on soundboards and in edits, where its formal, instantly recognisable sound became shorthand for a grand European television occasion, a final, or any moment presented as far more important than it really is.