De Música Ligera
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| "De Música Ligera" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Soda Stereo | ||||
| from the album Canción Animal | ||||
| Released | October 15, 1990 | |||
| Recorded | 1990 | |||
| Studio | Criteria Studios (Miami, Florida) | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 3:33 | |||
| Label | Sony Music | |||
| Composer(s) | ||||
| Lyricist(s) | Gustavo Cerati | |||
| Producer(s) |
| |||
| Soda Stereo singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"De Música Ligera" (Spanish for Of easy-listening music) is a song by the Argentine rock band Soda Stereo, released as a promotional single for their fifth studio album Canción Animal (1990).[1] Widely considered to be Soda Stereo's most popular song,[2] it is considered an anthem of rock en español.[3] and one of the most recognized compositions of Argentine rock.[4] The single was the last song performed at their farewell concert "El Último Concierto" in 1997.[5]
Composition
[edit]Music
[edit]The title and spirit of the song was taken from some albums Gustavo Cerati's parents had, which were named "Light Classics of all Times"
"The idea was to create instrumentation like that, very classical, of a band, and at the same time that had a light spirit.",[6] Gustavo said.
Like the lyrics, the music is deceptive: simple and complex simultaneously. The whole song is built from the riff and supported by the sequence carried out by the guitar. Four chords (Bm, G, D, A), emphasize the progression from G to D, where the power of the song is concentrated. The complexity of the harmony stems from the fact that the drop from D to G occurs in the middle of each verse and not the beginning or end as the effect could suggest at first glance. And it is exactly this lack of coordination between the singing and harmony which gives rise to the irresistible attraction that has become one of the most successful songs in the history of Latin rock.
Cerati has said that "De Música Ligera is one of the most instant hits that I did with Soda Stereo."[6]
Charly remembered that:
We recorded it in a single try, in a studio in Miami. This is unusual, because usually it takes like fifteen times to record. After, we recorded two additional versions, to try out different things, but they didn't stick. The version that is heard on the album is the first take we did.[6]
Lyrics
[edit]The lyrics of "De música ligera" are surprisingly short, just seven lines. Their meaning is cryptic and intentionally ambiguous: a love of easy-listening, which Cerati recalls as something finished ("nada más queda" (nothing else remains)), but also as a permanent presence ("nada nos libra" (nothing frees us)).
In the first two verses, Cerati sings "ella durmió al calor de las masas, y yo desperté queriendo soñarla" (she slept to the heat of the masses, and I woke up wanting to dream about her). The expression is both beautiful and complex: it expresses a clash of states that are worlds apart (sleep and wakefulness), but also the desire to dream of that which has awakened him, to be reunited with her in his own dream. It also expresses her unconsciousness, lulled by the effect of the masses, faced with his lucidity, he cannot help waking up and seeing things as they really are.
Then he sings "algún tiempo atrás pensé en escribirle" (some time ago I thought about writing to her) but mysteriously informs us that he could not overcome "las trampas del amor" (the traps of love). The lyrics then conclude telling everyone that he will not send "cenizas de rosas" (ashes of roses), and "ni pienso evitar un roce secreto" (nor he will avoid a secret touch), confirming the duality that awakens "aquel amor de música ligera" (that easy-listening-music love).
Regarding the theme and the lyrics, Gustavo Cerati once said:[7]
The first thing I always write is the chorus, which here was: "de aquel amor de música ligera" (that love of easy-listening). After talking about the music itself: "She slept in the heat of the masses and I woke up wanting to dream of her." That's it, it's the music talking! Between us, we felt and knew that this song was going to explode. Sometimes you feel that. And by the way it came out so instantly, it was as if ten thousand groups had played it before. Perhaps it was not like that... ten thousand groups played it after![8]
The names are in reference to the most used sequence of notes in all rock & pop, inherited from '20s jazz.[6]
This sequence is utilized to teach bass, and has been widely played by hundreds of bands, in different octaves and variations.
Music video
[edit]The accompanying music video to the song was directed by Alfredo Lois and shows the band performing the song behind a colorful background
Charts
[edit]| Chart (2014) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Latin Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[9] | 18 |
Certifications
[edit]| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Mexico (AMPROFON)[10] | Gold | 30,000* |
| Spain (PROMUSICAE)[11] Remastered Version |
Gold | 30,000‡ |
|
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
[edit]- ^ Lunardelli, Laura (2002). Alternatividad, divino tesoro: el rock argentino en los 90. Buenos Aires: Editorial Biblos. p. 39. ISBN 978-950-786-323-3. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- ^ Morris, Juan (2015). Cerati, la biografía. Buenos Aires: Sudamericana. p. 140.
[...] «De música ligera», el hit más emblemático de la historia del grupo.
- ^ MiamiDiario, ed. (9 September 2014). "«De música ligera» y «Cuando pase el temblor», las favoritas de los lectores". Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- ^ In some surveys, "De música ligera" is among the 10 most representative Latin rock compositions. See for example: mejores del rock latino, mejores del rock argentino rock.com.ar. Archived 2011-12-06 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Bellas, José (4 September 2014). ""Gracias totales", el mensaje que inmortalizó a Gustavo Cerati". Clarín. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
- ^ a b c d ""Soda Stereo y Gustavo Cerati entre los 100 Hits del Rock Argentino. Las canciones que hicieron historia, contadas por sus protagonistas", Zona de promesas". Zonadepromesasweb.com.ar. 2009-01-29. Archived from the original on 2009-01-29. Retrieved 2012-06-22.
- ^ "Gustavo Cerati - De Música Ligera". Zonadepromesasweb.com.ar. 2009-03-28. Archived from the original on 2009-03-28. Retrieved 2012-06-22.
- ^ "Esenciales: De música ligera". Rock.com.ar (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 October 2019.
- ^ "De Musica Ligera". Billboard. Retrieved 2025-02-09.
- ^ "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Type Soda Stereo in the box under the ARTISTA column heading and De Musica Ligera in the box under the TÍTULO column heading.
- ^ "Spanish single certifications – Soda Stereo – De Música Ligera". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved November 25, 2024.