Santaolalla Scores The Motorcycle Diaries with Latin American Melodies

New York City, USA – The soundtrack of The Motorcycle Diaries(eDGe/UMG Soundtracks) contains traditional Latin and contemporary melodies featuring original music composed and performed by famed South American producer/ songwriter Gustavo Santaolalla. Other featured artists include Damasco Perez Prado, Jorge Drexler, Maria Ester Zamora, “Polito” Gonzalez, Jorge Lobos, Cuti Aste and Roberto Lindl.

The film The Motorcycle Diaries (Focus Features), which received a standing ovation at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, is based on the life of Che Guevara which follows an inspiring journey of self-discovery and traces the youthful origins of a revolutionary heart. The rich and complex human and social topography of the Latin American continent is unveiled in all its glory as two friends experience life at its fullest. “Let the world change you, and you will change the world. ” – Che Guevara.Born in Buenos Aires, Gustavo Santaolalla is a Grammy award-winning Latin rock producer, songwriter and performer who has mastered the art of reinventing himself in many ways through his musical endeavors. In 1967 at the age of 16, Santaolalla was credited with creating the massive “Argentine Rock” movement with his band Arco Iris that combined progressive rock, jazz fusion, African
beats and other genres with Latin American rhythms.

Through his career he has worked as a group leader, solo artist, respected record producer, Surco Record president (which was home to many artists including Bersuit, Erica García, Arbol and La Vela Puerca) and most recently scoring and producing soundtracks. Santaolalla has scored films such as the
Oscar-nominated and Cannes Film Festival-winning Amores Perros, the Oscar-nominated and Venice International Film Festival-winning 21 Grams and now the upcoming The Motorcycle Diaries.

Proving his versatility once again, Santaolalla pays homage to the rich musical styles of Mexico and Latin America in this latest work. The score is peppered with flamenco-style guitar rhythms, sweeping orchestral melodies and a rock influence that is apparent in many tracks. The harder, guitar driven songs relay the feeling urgency that the film’s characters experience as they document their journey.

Gustavo Santaolalla’s moving score masterfully compliments the film, giving the listener a sense of the wild rollercoaster ride experienced by the young travelers. “Chipi Chipi” and “Que Rico El Mambo” are fun, energetic and festive songs while the riveting guitar playing in “Cabalgando” suggests anger and conflict. “Zambita” and “Al Otro Lado Del Rio” are more somber and melancholy tracks.

The Motorcycle Diaries, directed by Walter Salles (Central Station, Behind the Sun) is adapted by José Rivera from the journals of two real-life young Argentines, Alberto Granado and Ernesto Guevara de la Sema- who would later become Ché Guevara, leader of the Cuban Revolution.

The movie opens with Ernesto (Gael Garcia Bernal), a 23-year-old medical student specializing in leprology and Alberto (Rodrigo de la Serna), a 29-year-old biochemist bidding goodbye to their families and to Emesto’s girlfriend Chichina Ferreyra (Mia Maestro). Flushed with a romantic sense of adventure, they pile onto Alberto’s 1939 Norton 500 motorcycle (nicknamed “La Poderosa” (“The Mighty
One”) and head out into the “unknown.”

The aging bike carries them farther and farther away from the familiar and comfortable Buenos Aires surroundings, to surprising and exciting destinations. Over the course of eight months and eight thousand miles, what starts out as a lark becomes a profound journey of discovery, not only of themselves but of a continent filled with infinite sorrow and hope. Ernesto and Alberto also
discover an affinity for humanity within themselves and a determination to change the world.

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