EUROPEAN BALKAN PROJECT The European Media Studies at University of Potsdam as well as the Arts and Media Studies

at University of Applied Sciences Potsdam under the direction of Prof. Dr. habil. Arthur Engelbert focused on the Balkans. Especially the European Media Studies have a lot of contacts to the Balkans including Istanbul (Istanbul Bilgi University). Until now many different researches, events and seminars about topics in this context have been started. In summer 2007 Arthur Engelbert arranged the first seminar about Balkan Beats and invited protagonists from the Balkan Beats-scene from Berlin. In the last winter term 2009/10 an experimental interdisciplinary seminar about Serbia, the history and arts of the country, but especially about the developing of music took place. In the focus of the student work was the development of music from traditional folk-music, gypsy-music, Gua to the popular Balkan Beats in Western Europe. University of Applied Sciences Potsdam and the University of Potsdam are planning an interdisciplinary and international event about hybrid music using the example of Balkan Beats and Gypsy Music in cooperation with different protagonists of the Balkan Beatsscene in Berlin and of course partners from Beograd working on the topics hybrid music, sounds and European cultural phenomenon. The event will take place in Potsdam/Berlin in spring 2011. An important step to prepare the event is to explore the Balkans and to make first contact to partners at University of Arts Beograd working in this field. A group of students of European Media Studies and Arts and Management Studies will go for an eight-day-research trip to Beograd and Serbia. They did preparation regarding the content Serbia and especially hybrid music in winter term 2009/10, so the students will mainly work on the sound-project Translocation of Urban Sounds in Beograd: discovering, listening and recording the urban sounds and voices of Serbia and especially Beograd, the periphery of Europe and bringing and reflecting these sounds to the centre Potsdam/Berlin. Translocation of Urban Sounds will bring the soundscape of a square or buliding in Beograd to a simillar square or building in Potsdam/Berlin. We aspire to a longer partnership with University of Arts Beograd not only for bringing the soundscapes of Potsdam/Berlin also to Beograd in a second part of Translocation of Urban Sounds also for having a University-partnership with Beograd in the future. Prof. Englebert contacted Prof. Milena Sesic in March 2010 enquiring about possible partnership for the EBP project in Belgrade. I am not aware if a previous acquaintance existed between the two professors. Prof. Sesic suggested that Professor should check the website of the UAB as a natural partner of the FH Postdam. The correspondence soon started (also with Vice Rector Golemovic), resulting in the study visit of 5 students and Prof. Englebert himself to Belgrade and the UAB. The visit is supported by DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst German Academic Exchange Service). During the stay of Prof. Engelbert, the Memorandum on Student Exchange should be negotiated and eventually signed by the Rector of the UAB, then sent to Potsdam for the second signature. Prof. Dr. habil. Arthur Engelbert is Project director. He teaches at University of Applied Sciences Potsdam in the field of Media Theory and Science of Art and focuses on the topics Balkan, sounds and voices. He published about the Balkan as a European cultural phenomenon and did researches about sounds of the city, voices and villages in Joburg, Mumbai and Jerusalem.