The Collision of Freedom
Nazi Persecution of Czech, German and Polish Swing Dancers and Jazz musicians
The exhibition “The Collision of Freedom: Nazi Persecution of Czech, German and Polish Swing Dancers and Jazz Musicians” offers a comparative look at a transnational phenomenon for the first time.
Jazz music and swing dancing were popular in all three Central European countries during the interwar period. In the large cities in particular, there were numerous people indulging their love of jazz and swing in bars, cafés and concert halls. However, the National Socialists despised jazz and swing. For this reason they suppressed music and dance from 1933 onward in Germany; and later, in the territories conquered by the Nazi regime as well.
The exhibition traces this development, starting in Part I with the “Beginnings of Jazz in Europe”. Part II, “Youth, Jazz and Politics”, deals with youth subcultures and the incipient defamation and persecution by the Nazi regime in Germany. Part III, “Swing in Wartime”, uses biographies and localities to illustrate the increasing practice of persecution. Stories of self-assertion and resilience are revealed in Part IV, “Resistance Through Music”. The final Part V, “Liberation. Future. Hope”, recounts biographies of survivors and their continued work after 1945.
A chronology and different colors for each country allow the events to be placed in a broader, transnational context. Music tracks mentioned in the exhibition can be listened to via QR codes.
The exhibition consists of five modules, each with four interlocking partitions. Each partition wall measures 1.5m wide x 2.0m high.
The exhibition can be borrowed from the Bremer Bündnis für deutsch-tschechische Zusammenarbeit e.V. for a small insurance fee.
Contact person: Natalie Reinsch, reinsch@bremer-buendnis.de
So far, the exhibition has been shown at the following locations:
– Gdynia (28.06.2025 – 07.09.2025)
– Bremen (22.08.2025 – 14.09.2025)
– Prague (27.09.2025 – 12.10.2025)
