SONAFILM 2024 – Conference and concert ‘Film Music – Made in Spain 2’ – SUMMARY
Last weekend ended the 6th edition of the festival SONAFILM – Marina Alta Film Music Festival, and on Friday, August 16th, the festival held a conference and concert entitled ‘Made in Spain 2’ with the participation of composers Manel Gil-Inglada, Zacarías M. de la Riva, Paula Olaz, Vicent Ortiz Gimeno, and Darío Palomo, and the moderation/presentation of Gorka Oteiza (SoundTrackFest).
Our new and fantastic collaborator, the composer (and from what you will see below, also an excellent writer), Ana Beyron, attended both the conference and the concert, and brings us the following special article exclusively for SoundTrackFest.
Conference “Let s talk about Cinema - Music in animated movies” (Friday 16/8/2024 - 11:00h - Dénia)
Within the framework of the sixth edition of the festival SONAFILM, Festival de Música de cine de la Marina Alta (Alicante) directed by Javier Gil and that takes place once a year during the month of August, a conference took place on Friday, August 16th in the Sala Multiespai L’Androna – Balearia (located in the port of Denia) of the Spanish composers participating in the second edition of the concert ‘MADE IN SPAIN’.
Professionals who are active and who are the authors of some the greatest hits in the country: Darío Palomo (Amar es para siempre), Manel Gil-Inglada (Barrio Sésamo, Saber y Ganar, Dartacán y los tres mosqueperros), Paula Olaz (Verano en rojo, Bajo terapia, Nora), Vicente Ortiz (Los Farad, La línea invisible, Cuerpo de Élite) and Zacarías M. De la Riva (Bajo cero, Autómata, Las aventuras de Tadeo Jones).
It is worth highlighting the importance of this initiative, which began last year, as it allows the public to get in touch with and get to know the most current Spanish film music in a direct and transversal way.
The meeting was moderated by Gorka Oteiza, founder and director of the digital media SoundTrackFest, who introduced the composers in a very coherent and polite way, highlighting the work that each one had done. Although the theme of the round table was focused on animation, it started dealing with it and then opened the range, addressing other issues related like working in TV series, the importance of a mock-up, film works in productions of more authorial line, artificial intelligence, … etc..
The meeting began with Manel Gil-Inglada making an introduction to the field of animation for the general public, highlighting the Latin etymological root of “animatio” “anima” (soul). He also claimed the importance of seeing “animation” not as a genre within cinema but as a way of storytelling.
Later he showed some of his works related to animation such as Cher Ami (nominated for the Goya Awards) and D’Artacán y los Tres mosqueperros, directed by veteran animation director Toni García who was also in the room and participated in the conference, both with questions and providing very interesting information as a director.
Next, Zacarías M. de la Riva talked about the composition process for The Adventures of Tad Jones (directed by Enrique Gato), one of the most iconic and famous animation sagas in Spain, for which Zacarías was nominated for best original music at the Goya Awards. De la Riva showed one of the first animatics and the temp track (temporary reference music) that came to him before composing his music. He talked about how he had to adapt to the updates of the animatic and how he took into account which moments to highlight (camera movements such as travellings… etc). On the other hand, he showed us the mock-up (musical prototype made through samples) of the music he had composed prior to the recording with the Bratislava Symphony Orchestra. The professionalism and quality of the mock-up surprised the audience, even giving rise to a question from the audience asking for the creation of masterclasses related to this kind of technical aspects.
Afterwards, Gorka emphasized the TV side of composing for the visual media, thus introducing Darío Palomo, composer of Amar es para siempre, one of the series with the most chapters in the history of Spanish cinematography. The overwhelming number of chapters composed by Palomo, two thousand three hundred in total, stunned the audience who were totally fascinated. Gorka also asked him about his experience as a videogame composer and Darío explained in a very concise way what were the differences of this format in contrast to the cinematographic one. He also emphasized the importance of short-term deliveries in the serial format and how he had to organize himself to reach the agreed dates.
Next, in this line, Vicent Ortíz spoke very eloquently and precisely explaining the composition process he followed in the series, most of which have been with director Mariano Barroso and which are on platforms such as Movistar+. He explained how each project had certain characteristics to which he as a composer had to adapt. On the other hand, he talked about how he also took into account the levels of the mixes of each project and agreed with Palomo on how the composition process is very influenced by the deadlines, implying how time is a variable that plays a very important role. On the other hand, reference was made to the fact that when composers come in later to compose a different season in the project and must continue with the work a composer had already done previously under some previous parameters, and how it was important to determine to what extent one had the freedom to propose what he/she wanted.
Afterwards, the composer Paula Olaz, showed us a video about the recording process of her music with the Bratislava Symphony Orchestra for the film Nora (Zinemira – San Sebastian Festival) in collaboration with Pascal Gaigne, a film directed by Lara Izagirre. The music was a very interesting bet at the orchestral level, combining the pizzicato of the strings with the melody of the piano, which was answered by the accordion on different occasions. The passionate character, the delicacy and sincerity of Olaz’s music, combined very well with the strength of the images.
Later, Olaz made reference to the type of cinematographic works that were coming to her, a tendency of authorial cut, among the directors of a more intimate cinema, with more silences and less music. It is a type of cinema that, in fact, has been gradually settling in Spain in recent years as has been observed in the latest data collected by the Film Academy. She also explained how in projects of this type, the music should somehow have an authorial stamp and that it was important to have risky proposals, going out of the pre-established canon. She gave as an example the music of the film Verano en rojo (directed by Belén Macías and available on Movistar +), in which, based on her experience as a singer in a choir, she proposed choral music because it fit very well with the religious plot that the film covers.
Among the guest speakers was the president of the SGAE Foundation, Juan José Solana, who gave his views on artificial intelligence in music and what it could mean for the industry. He talked about setting limits to its use and the possibility of using it as a tool to accelerate compositional processes.
Finally, to culminate the event we were able to enjoy the wines of Bodega Aguilar, one of the sponsors of the SONAFILM festival.
All this served as a splendid introduction to meet the authors of the concert that would follow in the afternoon in Calpe.
Concert "Film Music - Made in Spain 2" (Friday 16/8/2024 - 20:30h - Calp)
Once again, the concert was held in the Auditorium of Calp and had a spectacular reception, forming queues at the doors of the auditorium to access the concert, which was free admission, and also sold out for the second year in a row. The concert was entirely dedicated to Spanish film music with the presence of all the participating composers: Darío Palomo, Paula Olaz, Vicent Ortíz, Manel Gil-Inglada, and Zacarías M de la Riva, in an evening organized by Javier Gil Pérez and presented by Gorka Oteiza.
The Universal Symphony Orchestra, the official orchestra of the festival, under the baton of its conductor, José Martínez Colomina, filled the auditorium with great determination and impetus, which vibrated with emotion before the music.
In addition, there were two speeches that highlighted the importance of the continuity of events like this at a cultural level, that of Guillermo Sendra Guardiola, councilman of culture of the City of Calp, and that of the national president of the SGAE Foundation, Juan José Solana, who showed the support of his organization to the festival. Among the attendees were also the aforementioned film director Toni García (author of D’Artacán, one of the films for which Manel Gil-Inglada had composed the music) and the famous Alicante composer Luis Ivars, who had already been one of the composers honored in the previous edition, which also gave the event a unique opportunity to meet the Spanish talent.
The concert had two parts and in the first one the audience could enjoy the music of Darío Palomo, Paula Olaz, and Vicent Ortíz while the second part included the music of Manel Gil-Inglada and Zacarías M de la Riva. Finally, as a surprise, the soprano Saray García accompanied by the orchestra sang one of the songs arranged by Manel Gil-Inglada for D’Artacán y los Tres mosqueperros. At the end of the concert there was a standing ovation from the audience of Alicante, who enthusiastically rose from their seats and reciprocated with effusive applause.
To start the concert we were welcomed by the warmth of the suite by Darío Palomo, who admirably took the stage as the interpreter of a synthesizer performing voices that accompanied in a very organic way the rest of the orchestra. The suite was formed from the music of the films: The Fabulous Abbozi Brothers, The Dragon Ninnden Ka-yh, Amar es para Siempre, Emilio Herrera. In short, a very complete suite in which different types of rhythms and harmonies could be appreciated.
We began with Los fabulosos hermanos Abbozi with a mysterious character typical of the fantasy genre in which the use of light woodwind shone, which complemented very well with the warmth of a melody that left us intrigued, to then enter into The Dragon Ninnden Ka-yh, different but sharing some of the previous characteristics, which made it the perfect nexus of union. Afterwards, we went into a more tender and dramatic character of Amar es para siempre and Emilio Herrera, which left no one indifferent.
Next, we were fascinated by the expressiveness of the suite for Nora composed by Paula Olaz together with Pascal Gaigne, which touched the hearts of the audience.
A very memorable and transparent melody in which the role of the piano is really very important. In addition, the tempo and the play of the “rubato” allows to appreciate the sonorous richness of the suite. One of the secondary themes is played by the woodwind section through the use of syncopations, giving it a dynamic character, making the listener want to keep listening for more.
The subtlety of the strings and their orchestral use, thought with a lot of criteria by the author, showed a musical taste that combined very well with the images and gave it that light-hearted and friendly character that the story asks for. On the other hand, it is worth mentioning the great orchestral timbre choice of Olaz, who demonstrates a wide handling of the orchestra’s registers.
Later, we were able to enjoy the Suite of Cuerpo de Élite composed by Vicent Ortiz, a theme with variations that was changing with an impeccable orchestration through tempo changes and so on, in which the epic character it contained could be seen.
Ortiz’s orchestral textures strongly supported his musical approach and showed a great command of the orchestra. His exploration of varied rhythms and the use of counter tempo took full advantage of the orchestra’s qualities.
The main theme also contained a heroic tone, a use of brass enriched by various string ostinatos that the orchestra expressed with great vitality. The climax it reaches in the second part through chromaticisms, in which there is more harmonic movement and several tempo changes against the beat gave it that legendary character.
After the pause, the presenter introduced the second part, with the works of two of the most representative composers in the world of animation, Zacarías M. de la Riva and Manel Gil-Inglada.
First we began with D’Artacán y los Tres mosqueperros, the suite by Manel-Gil Inglada in which we could appreciate melodies of an adventurous character with motifs of more mystery and tension that responded to each other and made the story of the characters work very well. The suite is characterized by an orchestration that managed to flow magnificently under the direction of José Martínez Colomina. The use of compositional techniques such as “runs” at moments of greater harmonic tension achieved this effect.
From the same author we could listen to the suite of Cher Amí, in this case and unlike the previous one, Manel opted for a more heroic and optimistic tone contrasting with a darker part through the use of dissonances and faster tempos. He similarly enhanced the melody of the main theme. Both films confirmed his skills in the world of animation.
Later, we continued with the music of Zacarías M de la Riva for The Adventures of Tad Jones, a milestone in the history of Spanish animation in which the music is already consolidated as an authorial seal of the saga. Thus, the music generated that intrigue and heroism that combined very well with the story and its characters. It also showed an expressive tone that reached great strength in certain moments showing the courage and epic nature of the saga, which combined with the momentum that the direction of the orchestra managed to transcend.
On the other hand, the suite, very rich in motifs that modulate through progressions and with a great orchestral balance, masterfully reached moments of great action with great rhythmic and harmonic activity that trigger other moments of rest.
To finish, as a final surprise we heard the song arranged by Manel Gil Inglada ‘Uno para todos y todos para uno’ from D’Artacán y los Tres mosqueperros, with the participation of the soprano Saray García who entered the stage to interpret an iconic theme of which the audience was part singing and applauding.
Finally, an explosion of applause from the audience filled the room for several minutes, rising in admiration. The participants were called to the front of the stage, where they received a gift from the city of Calp delivered by the hand of his councilman of culture, and then had the traditional family photo.
With yet another great success, the composers, the orchestra and the organization said goodbye to SONAFILM, a festival of which we hope to hear more in the next edition.
Article by Ana Beyron
Pictures by Javier Gil (SONAFILM)
