The Role of Beach Bars in Wrocław’s Local Music Scene

Abstract

Abstract The paper discusses Wrocław’s beach bars, i.e. open-air riverside facilities which (as the name suggests) mostly possess artificial sandy beaches. This importance of this type of venue, relatively new in Wrocław, for the local music life is constantly growing. The text characterises these urban spaces (which have been of only marginal interest to Polish scholars to date) and defines their place in the city’s popular music scene in relation to traditional forms of that repertoire’s presence. In his survey of local musical practice, the author refers to the city’s sonic identity (soundscape), which is co-created by urban artists. The paper covers the period of the author’s field research in 2019–2021 as well as his later observations which indicate potential directions of beach bars’ development and confirm their growing role in shaping Wrocław’s local music scene.