Årets Näck (Nix of the year) is an annual competition to select the year's incarnation of
Näcken, a male
fairy
A fairy (also called fay, fae, fae folk, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Cel ...
creature in Sweden. The competition takes place at the Tannery Holmen located in
Billstaån,
Hackås
Hackås is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality situated in Berg Municipality, Jämtland County, Sweden with 480 inhabitants in 2010.
''Hackås Court District'', or ''Hackås tingslag'', was a district of Jämtland in Sweden. The provinces in Norrlan ...
,
Berg Municipality
Berg Municipality (, ) is a municipality in Jämtland County in northern Sweden. Its seat is located in Svenstavik.
The present municipality was formed in 1971 when "old" Berg Municipality was amalgamated with four other entities.
As often in ...
, in southern
Jämtland
Jämtland () is a historical provinces of Sweden, province () in the centre of Sweden in northern Europe. It borders Härjedalen and Medelpad to the south, Ångermanland to the east, Lapland, Sweden, Lapland to the north and Trøndelag and Norw ...
. The contest is part of
Hackåsdagarna (Hackås Days), a festival organized by the Hackås District Foundation.
The contestants for the Årets Näck title compete by sitting or standing in the river while virtually nude and playing an instrument (typically the violin) to portray the Nix. Participants have also competed
a cappella
Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...
, on drum, or on accordion.
In 2009, the competition was atypically won by a saxophone player, Martin Norberg.
Rules of the competition
# The competition is open only to male musicians.
# The contestant may only cover himself with things that he can find in nature.
# A musical work will be played by each participant, either a traditional piece or newly composed. It should be performed on a "magically" tuned violin.
# The order of competitors will be decided by a random drawing at the music café at Strömbacka Mill prior to the contest.
# A three-man jury of two people skilled in folk music and a non-folk-musician female judge score the contestants according to the following criteria: musical performance, charisma and convincingness. After deliberation the jury announces the results, which can not be appealed.
# The winner receives a priceless handwritten certificate and SEK 2,000 (increased from 2004).
# The winner of each of the three selection criteria receives SEK 500 in premiums (in 1998).
# Since 2004, there has also been a crowd's prize awarded of SEK 500.
Source:
Past winners
Related
On 23 April 2010,
Olle af Klintberg appeared on TV4's
Talang, Sweden's "Got Talent" show. In that episode, when the curtains opened, Olle was portraying the Näcken by sitting on a rock with blue cloth on the floor to represent water, and water lilies placed around the stone and in his hair. He played the violin and sang a verse from "Näcken", a poem by
Erik Johan Stagnelius
Erik Johan Stagnelius (14 October 17933 April 1823) was a Swedish Romantic poet, playwright and romantic critic of political economy.
1810 to 1840 was a time of blossoming in Swedish poetry, and there were several writers of distinguished m ...
. Judges
Bert Karlsson
Bert Willis Karlsson (born 21 June 1945) is a Swedish record company manager, entrepreneur, and former politician ( Member of Parliament 1991–1994) and front figure of the New Democracy () party.
As the owner and manager of the record company ...
and
Charlotte Perrelli
Anna Jenny Charlotte Perrelli (; ; born 7 October 1974), known until 2003 by her maiden name, is a Swedish singer and television host. Under her maiden name, she won the 1999 Melodifestivalen and subsequently that year's Eurovision Song Conte ...
voted against Olle, while
Johan Pråmell voted for him.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arets Nack
Music television specials
Music competitions in Sweden
Nixies (folklore)
Berg Municipality
Culture of Jämtland County