Songs of Al Otro Lado Del Muro

During the production unit, we talked about the importance of the music to a telenovela and after watching an episode of Al Otro Lado del Muro, paying special attention to the music, I noticed several patterns that the production team made sure to include.

First of all, the song choice for the entrada is extremely important. This song is the one that becomes attached to the telenovela the quickest for obvious reasons and can become synonymous with the telenovela long after the telenovela has ended. Songs like Contra Viento y Marea by Intocable for a telenovela of the same name starring Adela Norriega or Al Diablo con los Guapos by K-Paz played everyday in my house and became attached to a particular time, day, and invoke certain memories of me and my grandma sitting in the living room at 8pm.

From the very first day, I noticed that the song featured in Al Otro Lado del Muro was very different from those of other telenovelas that I have watched and even the ones we watched in class. It was different because it isn’t describing the story or any of the characters, rather it’s a somber instrumental song with a woman vocalizing throughout. The entrada is extremely important since it sets the tone for the telenovela and can either hook or disinterest the audience. By choosing a song that is so different from those of the telenovelas that come before it, it is setting itself apart. Additionally, in many places, the 9 o’clock hour is when networks are allowed to show the more mature/edgy content so the entrada for Al Otro Lado del Muro does a great job of alerting the audience of this fact. Additionally, the non-traditional song choice is great since the telenovela itself is a nontraditional telenovela.

Al Otro Lado del Muro also features songs for some of the main couples including Joel and Sofia and Tomas and Frida. Amar Solo es Amar by Erick Bolivar is a sensual ballad that is played at moments when either Joel and Sofia are together or there is some sort of tension between the two characters, sexual or otherwise.

The song itself is very poetic, with the lyrics talking about living a new life with a new perspective, and searching for something more in life which is very fitting of their love story and more specifically reflects each of their journeys in the telenovela. For Sofia, she went from being a sheltered housewife and first lady to a presumed criminal who prostituted young girls to a member of the Witness Protection Program and finally, a spy in her own right. Joel on the other hand, was cold and kept to himself at first and completely cut himself off to feeling very much emotion until he met Sofia who helped him become more open and personable individual throughout their relationship. The song also features various melodic ups and downs which are reflective of the various obstacles and barriers Joel and Sofia must overcome to be together in the end.

Another couple who has a “theme” song is Tomas and Frida. Daniela Macias, the actress who plays Frida sings Amores de Lejos about two people who have been driven apart due to circumstance but the girl (who is singing) wants things to go back to how they were in the beginning. She sings “ya casi no queda, ya casi no hay, dime cuando vuelves, dime una vez mas” so she’s asking her partner when he will come back or when things will go back to normal between them. The song carries double meaning for the couple because while it explains their separation in the lyrics, it is also the song that get Frida a record deal and she records it while they are broken up.

            While there are many decisions made behind the camera that we as audience members don’t get to see, music offers an inside look at what the producers and writers were feeling or wanting to create within the audience and offers an invaluable asset to the production as a whole.