For many people, the name of Gustavo Santaolalla It is not immediately recognizable, but surely you have heard it frequently.
Because he has musicalized films like loves dogs o Motorcycle Diariesproduced the first albums by bands like Café Tacvba or Molotov and even created the music for the PlayStation video game, The Last Of Uswithout forgetting the adaptation of this same title for HBO Max.
The Argentine, one of the main promoters of rock in Spanish in the 80s and 90s, will receive the Board of Directors Award from the Latin Recording Academy on November 12 for the contributions he has made to Latin music during his career.
A recognition that adds to the many previously obtained, but for him certifies, once again, the connection he achieves with people.
I like to tell the story that the first time I was nominated for a Grammy was with the first album by Café Tacvba (homonymous, from 1992) and I lost. And I thought at that moment ‘who knows when I’ll have another chance’ and yes, today I have a few. It is very gratifying and important that I was always very clear that the awards are not really for me, but for my work, which is not only mine, it is the result of years of working with many other people from whom I have learned and also of a connection I have with something that I can’t describe what it is, but it definitely makes the switch.
Sometimes artists get confused and believe that the award is given to them but no, and being clear about that, I think that way I can really enjoy it. It is so gratifying to know that what you are doing connects with many people because I also think that music provides a service, it helps to spend a moment in life, it brightens up a sad moment. Art allows us to rethink reality in a different way, through another window. My intention is to try to positively affect people with what I do,” Santaolalla shared in an interview from Los Angeles with excelsior.
And although the holder of 12 Latin Grammy awards is aware of the trends that currently exist in the world of music, he has remained faithful to his own style, identity and above all to the constant search for excellence, which has allowed his sound universe expands in different directions and places him as one of the most acclaimed producers in the industry.
Quality is not locked into a genre and I have always sought it. There is a search for excellence in what I do, in all the records I have made I put my love, passion and dedication. All the artists I have worked with have contributed something different, have brought something different to the table, be it Café Tacvba, Cuarteto de Nos, Julieta Venegas, the great masters of tango; they are all strong and opinionated artists where you have to gain their trust to work (on their concepts).
There are producers, for example, who print their sound to everything they do, I am from a different school, I am more in the style of George Martin (The Beatles’ arranger) or Rick Rubin (Red Hot Chili Peppers): I try to find what the group or the artist is about and take it to the maximum. Each one has its identity, sound and things, but they all have a common denominator that I look for in their quality and excellence, and that applies to a video game or a puppet play”, added the also member of the Bajofondo supergroup.
Santaolalla developed this concept of excellence, passion and commitment to work from a very young age when he began his career and recorded his first album at the age of 19. He was always clear about what he wanted to do and how, and for him that is the secret to success in any profession.
I always say that this applies to whatever you want to do in life. First is that you have the discipline of work, it is not a matter of waiting for inspiration to come; work methodically every day and the moments when inspiration comes you have to take advantage of it. You have to find your identity, who you are, what your sound is going to be, what you are going to bring to the table, what is going to make it you and not someone else.
The third thing is to remain faithful to that vision, to maintain the differentiation, because you are going to have things that are going to attack you that do not necessarily have to do with you, but if you remain faithful and firm, things happen”, advised the producer who won two Oscars. .
Santaolalla is also working on new arrangements for the new version of the video game The Last of Us 2, which is expected to launch once the second season of the show returns to HBO Max. However, there is nothing confirmed by the strike of the union of actors and screenwriters. While Bajofondo is recording a new album inspired by the electronic music of the 80s.
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WHAT’S COMING
At 71 years old, Gustavo Santaolalla has created more than 100 albums in his career as an artist and producer. He has worked with figures such as La Maldita Vecindad, Los Prisioneros, Divididos, Fobia, Bersuit Vergarabat, Juanes, Jorge Drexler, La Vela Puerca, Árbol and Puya, among others. Bajofondo’s new album, his project that fuses tango with other genres, will be driven by the electronic music of the 70s and 80s. He is working on a documentary based on the life of Nora Cortiñas, the leader of the Madres de Plaza de Mayo, a movement who grew up in the military dictatorship in Argentina and are demanding the whereabouts of their children. Santaolalla recorded the score of The House, a stop-motion animated film from 2022, which tells three different stories about the same house. Produced for Netflix and work that won the Gardel award. “Our humble Grammy in Argentina,” he said affectionately and after recommending his tape.
BET, AGAIN, ON A MEXICAN
In addition to the fact that Gustavo Santaolalla is also nominated for an Emmy award for Long, Long Timemain theme of the series The Last Of Usstarring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, the Argentine has a very special affection for Mexico and its artists, which is why he did not hesitate to join the directorial debut of the Mexican cinematographer who recently worked his magic for Barbieby Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie.
I am working on the first film of my dear friend Rodrigo Prieto, he was the director of photography for loves dogs, Biutiful, Secret in the mountainand years ago by Martin Scorsese (The wolf of Wall Street). His first feature film as a director is based on the work of Juan Rulfo, Pedro ParamoSo it’s a very nice project,” he shared. The film will be released on Netflix.
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