Last updated on 10/12/2024
🕒 3 minIntroduction: A Baroque-Inspired Love Theme
The love theme from “Failed Calls” is a three-minute piece whose structure is essentially based on the rich tradition of Italian Baroque slow movements, a musical heritage that has profoundly influenced Western music history (and my applied music too). The composition reflects the story of Johann and Leyna, two young people whose lives intertwine during a sudden and devastating flood in Hamburg (Germany).
Plot of “Failed Calls”
A poignant drama set in the vibrant and chaotic Hamburg, a German city poised between modernity and tradition, suddenly brought to its knees by a disastrous flood.
Johann, a brilliant recent graduate just sacked for being “too competent“, struggles to keep his promises and dignity in a world that seems to reject him. Determined to build a future with his girlfriend Leyna, he finds himself navigating a sea of professional and personal uncertainties.
Leyna, a final-year sixth-form student, is increasingly ensnared in the “vortex” of social media. Her obsession with TikTok and a growing online infatuation with an unknown girl threaten not only her academic performance but also her relationship with Johann, creating an emotional chasm that seems to have become unbridgeable.
On a pivotal day, as the couple prepares to meet to discuss their waning future, a devastating “rain bomb” (wet microburst) strikes Hamburg. Streets transform into raging rivers, physically separating Johann and Leyna. While he desperately struggles to reach their rendezvous point, she finds herself trapped in a building, alone with her now useless smartphone.In this cinematic narrative, the flood becomes a powerful metaphor for their relationship: two souls adrift in a world crumbling, literally and figuratively, around them.
Through poignant flashbacks and moments of intense introspection, the film explores themes of love, identity, and connection in an era of digital isolation and existential precarity. “Failed Calls” is a compelling cinematic subject about the search for meaning and authenticity in an increasingly disconnected world. The screenplay masterfully blends personal drama with the spectacle of a natural disaster, creating a cinematic experience that keeps the viewer on tenterhooks until the final frame.
Will Johann and Leyna manage to reach each other, not just physically but emotionally, amidst the chaos of a submerged city? Or will this unexpected turmoil forever determine the course of the two young characters’ lives? “Failed Calls” is a film that makes one reflect, feel deeply, and, above all, leaves an irrepressible desire to embrace those dear to one’s heart.
Musical Influences and Symbolism
This simple yet effective compositional structure is based on the slow movements of Italian Baroque concertos, with particular attention to composers such as Vivaldi, Corelli, Albinoni and the Marcello brothers. The contrapuntal simplicity conceals harmonic progressions and deep expressiveness, characteristics that have influenced subsequent composers, including film music composers like Ennio Morricone, Stelvio Cipriani, Riz Ortolani, etc..
The love theme of “Failed Calls” continues this tradition, using a reduced ensemble (chamber string orchestra and solo oboe) to create an intimate and melancholic atmosphere that reflects the emotional complexity of Johann and Leyna’s story. The structural simplicity of the composition conceals a deep connection with a centuries-old musical tradition, still capable today of evoking intense and universal emotions.
Simple Music Structure for a Love Theme
The piece follows a simple “A – A – A1” form:
- Intro: Sighs of Strings
The strings begin with a gentle whisper, creating an atmosphere of tension and melancholy that mirrors the protagonists’ uncertainty. - Main Theme (A): The Voice of Longing
The oboe introduces the main theme, symbolising Johann’s voice as he desperately tries to reach – physically and emotionally – Leyna. The strings continue their delicate and ostinato accompaniment, depicting the difficult interpersonal situation. - Theme Repetition (A): Intensifying Emotions
The oboe theme returns, intensifying the emotion and the search for connection between the characters. - Transition: A Harmonic Departure
On the transition of blocks A – A1, two chords played by the strings, departing from the pure Baroque style, create a moment of delicate harmonic drift. This compositional “licence” might represent the moment when Leyna unexpectedly encounters Sophia in the hallway. - Final Theme (A1): Strings Take the Lead
The violins section (I and II) reprise and doubles the theme previously played by the oboe, symbolising the realisation that the “failed calls” are not only literal during the catastrophe but also metaphorical between the protagonists.
Bridging Past and Present
The piece captures the essence of disconnection and the desire for connection present in this story, using a musical language that unites the Italian Baroque tradition with contemporary sensibilities, creating an emotional bridge between the musical past and the modern narrative of “Failed Calls“.
