Czech and Polish Sound Memories of the Second World War

Radmila Švaříčková Slabáková is Professor of History at Palacký University Olomouc. She is editor of Family Memory: Practices, Transmission and Uses in a Global Perspective (Routledge, 2021).Marcin Filipowicz is Professor of Gender and Literary Studies at Charles University in Prague and at the University of Warsaw. He is the author of numerous articles and several monographs, including Configuring Memory in Czech Family Sagas: The Art of Forgetting in Generic Tradition (2022). Dobrawa Lisak-Gębala is an assistant professor at the Institute of Polish Studies, University of Wrocław. She is the author of the monograph Poetycka tanatosonika. Dźwięki przemocy zbrojnej w wierszach z lat 1939–1945 (2025).Sławomir Wieczorek is an assistant professor at the Institute of Musicology, University of Wrocław. He is the author of On the Musical Front: Socialist Realist Discourse on Music in Poland, 1948–1955 (2020) and co-editor of Sounds of War and Peace: Soundscapes of European Cities in 1945 (2018) and Sensitive Sound Recordings (2022).Andrea Hanáčková is Associate Professor of Theatre and Radio Studies at Palacký University Olomouc. She recently published Autorský rozhlasový dokument (2022), which charts three decades of independent Czech documentary production since the fall of communism.

“Sound remains one of the least explored areas within the flourishing field of memory studies. As a Czech-Polish memory venture, this book addresses a significant gap by mapping the polyphonic mnemoscape of World War II across diverse memory media. A landmark in memory studies.”Jie-Hyun Lim, Sogang University “This pioneering collection of essays brings together the historical intersection between sound, memory and war in new and innovative ways. The interdisciplinary approach adopted opens exciting avenues of inquiry and in so doing is an indispensable and invaluable volume in the field of sound studies and war.”Joy Damousi, University of Melbourne “This imaginative study challenges the visual bias that has long dominated memory studies, drawing attention to sonic icons that resonate across generations. Through its comparative, transnational and multisensory approach, it offers a vital contribution to memory studies, sound studies and post-socialist heritage research. It transforms the way we listen to the past."Ewa Domańska, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań; Visiting Professor, Stanford University

• PART 1: Museums1 Museums as the Medium of War SoundsRadmila Švaříčková Slabáková2 Weapon Sounds and Sirens in Czech and Polish Museums and MemorialsRadmila Švaříčková Slabáková3 Voices in Czech and Polish Museums and MemorialsRadmila Švaříčková SlabákováPART 2: Literature4 Literature as the Medium of War SoundsMarcin Filipowicz and Dobrawa Lisak-Gębala5 Thanatosonic Scarcity, Silence and Sounds of German in Contemporary Czech Prose FictionMarcin Filipowicz6 Voices, Weapon Sounds and Machine Noises in Polish Post-memorial Prose FictionDobrawa Lisak-GębalaPART 3: Sound Art7 Czech Soundwalk Production on the Second World WarAndrea Hanáčková8 Toward and Beyond Sound Memories: Field Recordings at Holocaust Memorial Sites in PolandSławomir WieczorekConclusionRadmila Švaříčková Slabáková, Marcin Filipowicz, Dobrawa Lisak-Gębala and Sławomir Wieczorek