The Music That Hooks You For Life
This past week, we had a lesson on the music that makes part of the telenovelas we love. I was super excited for this lesson, especially to hear some classics.
Though I am sure I am not the only one, I can definitely say I love music. Whether I am using it to focus (as I am right now) or listening to keep me energized at the gym, there will always be an occasion for music.
We see this concept throughout the episodes, with there being a perfect song in place for the mood and occasion. However, I want to shift my focus to the piece that identifies a telenovela as a whole: the intro song.
If I remember nothing else of a telenovela (which is virtually impossible, but I'll stick with it for the example) that theme song is going to definitely trigger a memory. I sometimes find myself asking my mom which telenovela I'm trying to remember with the simple reference of the song. I'll admit - sometimes I love an opening song so much that I go and do my research on it and it makes it's way to my playlist.
The telenovela I am watching for this class is called El Final Del Paraíso, which is actually the final season to a five season journey. However, the theme song for the second and third season specifically is always on my mind. The very beginning of this song, "La Raya" by Robert Taylor & Nicolás Tovar, features a catchy whistling start. You can probably imagine why I find myself randomly recalling this song and series as a whole.
In general, I find it super interesting to look into the song itself once I hear it on a telenovela, whether that be the theme song or just one played throughout an episode. For example, I was a bit confused as to why Los Tigeres Del Norte's "La Reina Del Sur" wasn't the theme song to the telenovela itself until our past class where we discussed how Los Cuates De Sinaloa ultimately became the performers of the theme song.
Additionally, it's really interesting to listen to a telenovela's theme song in full and actually pay attention to the lyrics. A lot of the times, these theme songs may be created specifically for the telenovela, so the theme song reveals a lot about the plot and may even give insight into what's to come. This is definitely the case with "La Raya".
All in all, a catchy theme song is all you need to keep that telenovela circulating in your mind. Whether it is one you watched yesterday or three years ago, just hearing a snippet of it on the radio during your car ride is enough to flood you with the drama, suspense, sadness, joy, etc. you felt while watching it.
It's amazing how much music is capable of doing. Just like certain phrases or sayings, music has the ability of sticking to us and allowing us to remember certain moments in life or certain scenes from movies and shows. Listening to a theme song from a childhood show might make you remember what you were doing while the song was playing: singing along to it, hearing your mom yell at you in the back and telling you to not sit too close to the television, etc. Sometimes when I hear soundtracks from shows I've watched awhile back and forgot that I had watched it, all the memories start to flood in. As for La Reina del Sur, the telenovela I'm watching for this class, I always skip the theme song because I feel like it's interrupting the show, but after Dr. A showed us the theme song in class, I never realized how much information the song was telling the viewers.
ReplyDeleteAs long as I can remember, sitting in the living room and patiently waiting for the telenovela to start with either my parents, brother , sister, cousins, aunts, uncles, both my grandmas, or even family friends is the best part because we would all have the theme song memorized and would either sing out loud or tap are feet or hands with the tempo of the music. The theme and incidental music really play an important role in the telenovela in my opinion. The Intro music honestly gets you prepared for the telenovela and the characters you are going to see in the telenovela. As said above "music has the ability of sticking to us and allowing us to remember certain moments in life or certain scenes from movies and shows ." If some one was describing a telenovela, but did not know what was the name of it or the actors that played a role in it, they would try to remember the lyrics of the song since it was played every week day and quickly remember the name of the telenovela. Also, the incidental music that happens within certain scenes can either add more emotion or suspense and can have viewers on the edge of their seat or sobbing cause of what is happening or bound to happen. Furthermore, till this day, I still listen to some of the theme and incidental music from different telenovelas.
ReplyDelete