In Nordic noir, also sounds convey a critical view of the Nordic region

Nordic noir, the distinctive form of socially critical crime fiction from the Nordic region, has enjoyed unprecedented success in this millennium. In his recent doctoral dissertation in musicology, MA Kaapo Huttunen explores the role of music and sound design in Nordic noir film and television series.

Huttunen focuses in particular on three case studies: the television series The Bridge (Bron/Broen, Sweden/Denmark 2011–2018) and The Killing (Forbrydelsen, Denmark 2007–2012), and the film series Wallander (Sweden 2005–2013).

In addition, he examined the title sequences of nineteen different Nordic noir series from three different decades.

The research provides new insights into Nordic noir as a cultural phenomenon by taking music and other sounds into account.

The dissertation shows that Nordic noir employs varied audiovisual strategies. Music and other sounds play a key role in the overall feel of the series and in conveying the story.

Sounds depict the Nordic region and Nordicness

Nordic noir has been said to draw on the melancholy characteristic of Nordic arts. Its central feature is that it stems from nature experiences: the darkness and the cold of the North, the lights and shadows of the long dusk and dawn, the distances that separate people from each other.

Music and soundscapes are an important part of these images of the Nordic region and Nordicness.

“Sounds are an essential element in the experience of space and place, and they can also convey melancholic impressions of darkness and loneliness. Think, for example, of The Swan of Tuonela by Jean Sibelius,” Huttunen says.

In the title sequences of Nordic noir series, the music is almost always in a minor key. They often combine a static long note of a fixed pitch with simple melody lines. Such musical features can be seen as tapping into some very long traditions of Nordic folk music.

As Nordic noir has its particular features that arise from characteristically Nordic aspects, Huttunen considers it as more than just a specific style or brand. Therefore – contrary to what has sometimes been suggested in recent research literature – it is not a phenomenon that is geographically mobile, such as film noir, for example.

“Nordic noir conveys images and impressions of the Nordic region to the world and also to us, the Nordic people. It is like a window onto the Nordic society and its mental landscape. If a similar style is used somewhere else, it is no longer Nordic noir,” Huttunen states.

Sounds as tools for social criticism

Nordic noir's social criticism is reflected in the themes and narrative content of the series, but also in their audiovisual structures.

For example, in the series The Bridge and The Killing, the music and sound design lead the audience to connect the events of the series with the everyday life outside the narrative, thus bringing a social dimension to the series.

“They lead us to think about our own experiences of the world and our perceptions of prevailing social conditions, rather than diverting our attention from them,” Huttunen describes.

As has been pointed out in previous research, the melancholy of Nordic noir is not only an aesthetic feature, but can also be seen as a symbol of a faltering Nordic welfare state.

However, Huttunen points out that sometimes the gloom created by the combined effect of sounds and images cannot be considered merely as melancholic, but rather as pessimistic. This, in turn, is in line with sentiments found also in Nordic noir literature.

“For example, Henning Mankell's popular Wallander novels suggest the idea that the downward curve of the Nordic welfare society can no longer be reversed.”

> The doctoral dissertation ”The Sounds of Nordic Noir” is available on the publication archive of the University of Turku