The Spirituality of Childhood in the 1990s in Gdańsk: Texts and Music

VHS tapes, colorful orthallions, the gray of the blockhouses and the first signs of capitalism. How did we remember Gdansk in the 90s? What did the city sound like at the time of the political transformation and what of those experiences remained in our memory?

“Duchology. Childhood of the 90s in Gdańsk” is an original musical and narrative project of the Gdansk duo an-hoer, created by Wojciech Unterschuetz and Piotr Bratoszewski. The project is created as part of a cultural scholarship of the City of Gdańsk and combines music, literature and personal memories from the period of political transformation.

During an intimate meeting in our house of culture there will be a pre-premiere listening of fragments of eight sound works, dedicated to three districts of Gdańsk: Brzeźn, Siedlce and the Old Town.

The musical compositions will become the starting point for a conversation about growing up in the 90s, the culture of VHS tapes, the aesthetics of the turn of the analog and digital era, and personal stories related to Gdańsk.

The meeting will be an opportunity to look at the local memory and experiences of a generation that grew up in a time of rapid social and economic change. We will talk about nostalgia, the contrasts of that decade and how sounds and memories help to recreate the image of a city from years ago.

an-hoer — Gdańsk duo creating electronic and experimental music. In their activities, the artists combine audio, field recording, soundscapes and retro aesthetics.

Wojciech Unterschuetz — responsible for the narration and dramaturgy of the project.

Piotr Bratoszewski — sound engineer and composer.

More about the duo's work: an-hoer on Instagram.

Dr Tymoteusz Skiba — literary scholar, editor and writer from Gdańsk associated with the current of ruderal tales and the subject of local memory.