Göransson shapes the sound of The Odyssey without orchestra
Composer Ludwig Göransson has reunited with Christopher Nolan for The Odyssey, building the sound of ‘The Odyssey’ from ancient Greek instruments, bronze gongs and scrap metal instead of a traditional orchestra. Their third collaboration after Tenet and Oppenheimer pushes the film’s Bronze Age world into a more timeless sonic space.
Key Takeaways
- Göransson’s score for Nolan’s The Odyssey is their third team-up after Tenet and Oppenheimer.
- Nolan barred a conventional orchestra, steering the music toward period-plausible textures.
- The composer rented 35 bronze gongs and worked with scrap metal, plus a lyre and an aulos.
- Vocals and the original song “When I’m Home” add emotional pacing on the soundtrack.
- Universal Pictures is distributing Nolan’s Homer adaptation, produced with Emma Thomas via Syncopy.
According to Variety, the assignment marks a sharp turn from Göransson’s recent Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu work, which leaned on heavy synths and guitar-based orchestrations.
Why did Nolan ban an orchestra from the score?
Nolan told Göransson not to use an orchestra. The composer previously explained to Time Magazine that the orchestra did not exist in that era, calling the limit both a challenge and a chance to make something unique.
In a featurette tied to the film, Nolan said the team wanted ancient Greece to feel recognizable without copying the look and feel of earlier classical epics, aiming for something more timeless. That brief pushed Göransson outside his comfort zone and into sounds he had never used before.
How did bronze, scrap metal and Greek instruments shape the music?
Because the story is set in the Bronze Age, Nolan suggested bronze as a thematic element. Göransson rented 35 bronze gongs in different sizes and experimented widely.
He described striking walls, railings and found objects outdoors, including scrap metal and air conditioning units. He also used a lyre and an aulos, pairing ancient Greek instruments with those found-metal textures.
Vocals, he said, supply more of the score’s emotional pacing. The soundtrack also includes the original song “When I’m Home,” written by James Blake, Travis Scott, Göransson and Nolan.
Who stars in Nolan’s Odyssey, and why does the score matter?
Nolan’s film adapts Homer’s epic with Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Tom Holland as Telemachus, Pattinson as Antinous, Zendaya as Athena and Charlize Theron as Circe. The wider ensemble includes Lupita Nyong’o, Jon Bernthal, Benny Safdie, John Leguizamo, Himesh Patel, Will Yun Lee, Mia Goth, Jimmy Gonzales and Elliot Page.
It is Nolan’s 13th feature as director. He wrote the screenplay from the ancient poem and produced with Emma Thomas under Syncopy, with Universal Pictures distributing. For viewers tracking film and streaming rollouts, the handmade score is a major craft signal that this Odyssey will not sound like a standard studio epic. Follow more release and craft alerts in our Streaming & TV Alerts coverage.