Maxance Vincent
With the second season of Andor, composer Brandon Roberts inherits the foundation built by Nicholas Britell, who worked on the first season and composed music for the second season’s fourth episode, alongside the Ghorman national anthem. When he departed the project, Roberts stepped in to finish the fifth and sixth episodes, while also scoring the other nine complete episodes of the season, and, as he explains to Awards Radar on Zoom, “it was a bit of a puzzle. However, the palette was established. Tony Gilroy had clear marching orders on what he was looking for in the score, and it went very smoothly.”
In building upon the foundation of season one’s score, Roberts explains that “ I loved what Nick had established in season one, so I wanted to continue that vibe and not make it feel like it was a totally different person. I dove deep into his palette and made sounds that are similar. I used the Andor theme when necessary and when applicable. However, Tony Gilroy was pretty clear. We have new planets, worlds, and characters, but we also have massive dramatic arcs for everybody. He said, “I want you to run with that and make it your own while also nodding the hat back to season one.” But it also has to segue into Rogue One. If you’ve listened to the palette of Michael Giacchino’s score, it’s very orchestral. Maybe there’s some electronics in there that you just don’t hear, but the main takeaway is how it’s 100% orchestral to segue into A New Hope. There was a challenge of coming from one style, slowly morphing into another style, while bridging the two. It was a challenge, but it was a great one.”
As each block of three episodes cuts to a year later, Roberts says that the screenplays are so detailed that “it transfers into the music organically. He’s setting a lot of the stuff in new worlds, or he’s focusing on different parts of the characters. We leaned into that to create a musical vibe for each of the three episode arcs. Obviously, you’re keeping track of the 12-episode arc, and then you’re keeping track of the two-season arc simultaneously. Even within that, I think each one of these three episodes has its own musical vibe, while still trying to maintain some thread. With that many episodes, it was actually refreshing, because it allows you to reset each three episodes on some level, musically,”
Of course, there was much to talk about with a show where music plays a significant role in it. We not only discuss the process of composing music for the newer worlds of the season, including Mina-Rau and Ghorman, but we also discuss how the Niamos theme was reinterpreted for Mon Mothma’s wedding dance, doing something different with Yavin’s musical palette, and how to utilize music for dramatic tension and during the show’s multiple action sequences.
You can listen to the full interview below and stream all episodes of Andor – Season 2 on Disney+ today.
[Some of the quotes in this article have been edited for length and clarity]
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