Smailović caught the imagination of people around the world by playing his cello, most notably performing Albinoni's "Adagio in G Minor" for twenty-two days, in the ruined square of a downtown Sarajevo marketplace after a mortar round had killed twenty-two people waiting for food there.

[2] In Smailović's honour, composer David Wilde wrote a piece for solo cello, "The Cellist of Sarajevo", which was recorded by Yo-Yo Ma.

[citation needed] Canadian author Elizabeth Wellburn worked with Smailović to create the children's book Echoes from the Square (1998).

[3] In 2012, a meeting between Smailović and Galloway took place during which the latter assured he meant no harm in telling a fictional representation of the events.

[4] Smailović escaped from Sarajevo in late 1993, and has since been involved in numerous music projects as a performer, composer, and conductor.