Soundtracks of a nation
Catalonia's national broadcaster TV3 has generally opted for domestic performers to provide the music for its homegrown television series, from Gerard Quintana to Adrià Puntí
Gerard Quintana says that in some concerts the audience call for Ventdelplà. It is not the name of any Sopa de Cabra song but rather the title song of Descobreix-te, the TV series for which Quintana provided the vocals. TV3 opted for domestic musicians, such as Gossos and Sanjosex, who provided versions of Quintana's song in the following seasons of the series. The anecdote shows the popularity of homemade songs in Catalan-produced TV series.
Polseres vermelles was a series that also proved significant for Teràpia de Shock and their song Sense tu. Albert Planadevall from Ràdio Flaixbac remembers how the song became an anthem for the series and compares it to another example of how songs can frame the identity of a popular programme: “In one episode they used a piece by Lluís Gavaldà and Josep Thió, Silencis, while the protagonist danced; the very next day they asked us for it on the radio.”
This song was also used in the fifth episode of Merlí. While Merlí appeals to adolescent viewers, it is also popular with their parents' generation, which is reflected in its use of classical music alongside tracks from groups such as La Casa Azul and Violadores del Verso. Musician Xavi Capellas is in charge of the series' music, after already working on such projects as El cafè de la Marina (2014) and Tornarem (2012). Currently working on Manuel Huerga's new thriller for TV3, Nit i dia, Capellas says he is not so influenced by American series, although he does find the work of Cliff Martínez on The Knick interesting, as reminiscent of “the era of the film Traffic”, as well as such classic soundtracks as Breaking Bad and The Sopranos. As for the new series, he says in relation to the US: “I like what is being done but I prefer to find something more original.”
Meanwhile, a distinguishing feature of Joel Joan's shows is the carefully chosen music to add personality to his projects. Porca misèria was the first Catalan series to incorporate music in the vein of the modern classics of American TV fiction. As a viewer, Joan says he appreciated those scenes that seemed like a “self-contained videoclip” reinforcing the feelings of the characters in question. Albert Pla, Adrià Puntí, Sau and El Último de la Fila are some of the musicians whose work also appears in his shows.
The director of Cachitos de hierro y cromo, Jero Rodríguez, points to the series by Marc Crehuet, Pop ràpid, as an example of raucous comedy that mirrors a whole generation in the vein of the British series, The Young Ones, with a music selection that goes beyond simply “putting on a song because it sounds good”.