Calling "Helga!" is a running gag at German concerts and festivals.
A person may call for a Helga; [1] others answer and create a chorus-like group effect. [2] "Helga ist tot!" (Helga is dead) denies the request. [3] Further allegations are gravestones, memorials or graffiti. The background is unknown; some point to a rather rainy Hurricane Festival in Scheeßel, where a high pressure cyclone called Helga was called for but did not arrive in time. The call is also the origin of the name for an annual prize for German festivals, [4] and is being used by a service company. [5]
Calling "Helga!" is a running gag at German concerts and festivals.
A person may call for a Helga; [1] others answer and create a chorus-like group effect. [2] "Helga ist tot!" (Helga is dead) denies the request. [3] Further allegations are gravestones, memorials or graffiti. The background is unknown; some point to a rather rainy Hurricane Festival in Scheeßel, where a high pressure cyclone called Helga was called for but did not arrive in time. The call is also the origin of the name for an annual prize for German festivals, [4] and is being used by a service company. [5]