Calling "Helga!" is a running gag at German concerts and festivals.

Helga festival gravestone

Ritual

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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]

References

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