Gustavo Santaolalla on the "Magic" Behind "The Last of Us" Sound

Argentine composer and producer Gustavo Santaolalla described the creation of the main theme for the acclaimed "The Last of Us" video game and subsequent HBO series as an act of "magic." Santaolalla, known for his distinctive use of the Andean instrument ronroco, stated that he cannot fully articulate the process behind composing the iconic music.

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If I could tell you in words, I wouldn't tell you, because it's like a magician telling you how they make a card disappear... I'm not going to tell you, because it's magic. But I can't tell you, because I don't know.

"If I could tell you in words, I wouldn't tell you, because it's like a magician telling you how they make a card disappear... I'm not going to tell you, because it's magic. But I can't tell you, because I don't know," Santaolalla explained in a conversation with Cooperativa during his visit to Chile.

The two-time Oscar winner, recognized for his scores for "Brokeback Mountain" and "Babel," adheres to a consistent creative process. He begins composing from the script, long before experiencing the game or series visually, aiming to capture the essence of the characters and narrative. This approach proved so impactful that Neil Druckmann, the creative director of Naughty Dog's "The Last of Us" titles, drew inspiration from Santaolalla's music to shape key scenes in the video game.

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It's like what inspired me, that... like the theme, for example, of 'The Last of Us,' I remember that I got up, got out of bed, picked up the ronroco and everything came out, except for the part, there's a part in the middle, where there's a change, which I did later; but the theme, all of that, the second part, all of that came out like that.

Santaolalla recalled waking up, picking up his ronroco, and the theme emerging almost spontaneously, with only a minor adjustment made later. He finds it difficult to pinpoint the exact source of this inspiration, attributing it to a moment of connection after immersing himself in the story through reading and discussions with Druckmann. The ronroco itself, a variant of the charango, holds a special place in Santaolalla's work, leading to his 1998 album "Ronroco" and forming the centerpiece of his current "Ronroco Tour."

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Where does it come from? What do I know! I don't know... it's at that moment like you connect. I mean, yes, I was immersed in it, in the theme, having read, having heard Neil (Druckmann) tell me the story, having read the treatment, but yes, it's something that is difficult to explain... I don't know...