Midsommar

Midsommar (Original Motion Picture Score) is the soundtrack to the 2019 film of the same name. It contains the instrumental score for the film, written, composed and produced by electronic and industrial musician The Haxan Cloak, who was credited under his real name Bobby Krlic. Krlic researched various elements related to traditional folk from Nordic countries and experimented with various instrumentation, from traditional orchestra to electronic music. The album was released by Milan Records on July 5, 2019, with a vinyl edition later followed on September.<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 8, 2019 |title=The Haxan Cloak's Beautiful, Terrifying Score Is 'Midsommars Secret Weapon |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2050382/haxan-cloak-midsommar-soundtrack/columns/sounding-board/ |access-date=June 8, 2023 |website=Stereogum |language=en}}</ref> It received critical acclaim and has been considered as one of the best soundtracks of the decade. Development Ari Aster wrote the script while listening to Krlic's 2013 album Excavation which "put him in a space that felt inextricable" and felt his contribution to the score would be apt for the film. He communicated to Krlic through emails, with the latter sending source music and thoughts through virtual communication but as the results were not satisfying, Aster went to Los Angeles to work on the score together in person. Aster felt that he and Krlic share similar sensibilities through the sonic nature of the film. He recorded the score within a week, eight hours per day and was supervised by Aster on the musical score and soundscape apt for the film. The score for Midsommar contained numerous electronic textures which he wanted to imitate that of Musique concrète. It would be followed by a 16-piece orchestra with double bass, cello and violins, all of them recorded at Air Studios, London. The musicians experimented Krlic's recordings in tape which consisted of slowed down beats of high strings, gongs, cymbals to create a "strange, unsettling feel" and from his home made strings, they would replay all of the electronic music done through strings. To fabricate ancient folk music, he further researched a lot of traditional Nordic, Scandinavian and Icelandic music through instrument libraries, which could he write for older instruments as most of them were rooted in Swedish folk music.