SoundEast. Sonic Inquiries Into Cultures from Central and Eastern Europe & Central Asia

During the last decades, the humanities have seen a sonic turn, opening new approaches to the auditive and multisensorial dimension of culture. Only in recent years, sound studies have included aboriginal culture and the Global South within their spectrum of research, to de-Westernize its perspectives and methodologies. Following this trajectory, the workshop aims to provide a space for analysis and discussion upon the sonic aspects of the still-overlooked cultural territories of the former Eastern Bloc, while reflecting together on new decolonial listening positionalities within the (post-)Soviet and Eastern European studies. Moving across multiple disciplines (media, music, film, performance, literary studies) the workshop interrogates in which ways sound is involved in aesthetic, political, and historic processes in Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia and the Soviet Union, before and after socialism. 

The workshop’s scope is both theoretical and historical: How is sound conceptualized in formalist and semiotic theories of art and culture? How are sonic materialities intertwined with concrete historical forms of knowledge? How do cultures of former socialist countries hear across historical trajectories, and how can they be listened to?

These and other questions are addressed by international scholars in a two-days online workshop on 3  and 4 March. The workshop includes academic paper presentations, artists’ talks, listening sessions and two Open Discussion sessions. 

The online workshop and its future publication are funded by LMU Munich. Project in collaboration with the University of Copenhagen.Created and organised by Giada Dalla Bontà (University of Copenhagen) & Philipp Kohl (LMU Munich/U Zurich). 

Registration

A Zoom link will be provided upon registration.

Programme

Download the full programme (pdf)

Inquiries at: philipp.kohl@lmu.de, dallabonta@hum.ku.dk