Yesterday marked the premiere of A Small Light, a new limited series on National Geographic that tells the story of Miep Gies, the fearless heroine who helped protect Anne Frank and her family from the Nazis during World War II.
A Small Light brings plenty of star power to the screen, with a standout cast including Bel Powley, Liev Schreiber, and Joe Cole. But the show's original soundtrack is equally as impressive.
Ariel Marx (American Horror Story, Candy, Sanctuary) served as composer for the soundtrack's original score, while Este Haim (of HAIM) assumed production duties for the star-studded covers featured in the show.
Drawing from some of the biggest hits of the '30s and '40s, Este worked closely with artists like Kamasi Washington, Sharon Van Etten, Remi Wolf, Angel Olsen, Moses Sumney, Orville Peck, Weyes Blood, King Princess, and Danielle Haim to reimagine some of the era's classics for today's music and TV lovers. On May 5, the first pair of covers from A Small Light will be released on Spotify, and every Tuesday through May 23, the remaining covers will be released following their appearance on the show. In addition, Ariel's score will be released on May 19.
Este and Ariel also joined forces to create a companion playlist featuring the music that inspired their work on A Small Light. Ranging from early-20th-century hits by Charlie Parker, Ella Fitzgerald, and Edith Piaf to more recent gems by Tom Waits and Andrew Bird, these songs helped inform the soundtrack's distinct blend of past and present sounds.
For the Record sat down with Este and Ariel to learn more about A Small Light and their creative approaches to the soundtrack, as well as the standout moments they experienced along the way.
What initially excited you about working on this project? Este: I signed on for a multitude of reasons, including the fact that I got to play curator. It was basically my dream dinner party list of artists who I wanted to hang out with and become friends with . . . which I did.
I also think that A Small Light's story hits close to home for me and is one that needs to be told. As a Jewish woman who was obsessed with Anne Frank as a kid (and who literally thought that she was Anne Frank when she was eight years old), I always felt a kinship to her.
How did the artists featured on your playlist inspire the soundtrack? Este: As I researched music for the soundtrack, I found myself gravitating toward artists like The Andrews Sisters and The Ink Spots that my Bubby Blanche would play on the family's old Victrola when I was a kid. And after seeing all of A Small Light, it was clear the music had to reflect not only the actors' brilliant performances, but also Miep's resilience and strength.
So when I was asked to find artists to perform covers of these amazing songs, it was important that they could handle this sort of material and truly communicate the feeling of the song. Thankfully, every artist I asked to be a part of the project agreed and was just as excited as I was to delve into this material.
Ariel: While finding my way into the palette of the score, I was definitely drawn to the popular music of the time-like Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington-as a jumping off point, but in an effort to modernize and embody Miep's soul, I was most influenced by contemporary artists who live between the lines of jazz, folk, experimentalism-like Tom Waits and Andrew Bird.
Each of these artists find haunting beauty in their charming playfulness and imperfection. These small ensembles feel as powerful as any orchestra or big band. This intimate, resourceful, lively, virtuosic yet accessible aesthetic felt most appropriate to underscore Miep's world.
What were your respective creative approaches for this soundtrack? Este: I spent a lot of time listening to playlists and looking at old Top 10 charts that weren't just from America, but from all over the world. And I actually went further back than the 1940s. There's actually a song in the in the pilot called Til We Meet Again that was originally written in the middle of World War I. And even if it's from a different era, the subject matter is pretty much the same. It's like, You're leaving, and I don't know when I'm going to see you again.
It was just really fun to kind of rediscover these songs and try to figure out exactly how I wanted to reimagine them. And the goal was to update these songs but still retain a classic feel that stands the test of time. The songs from that era quintessentially feel like they're from that era. They use different words. The vocabulary is very much from the '30s and '40s. But still, I wanted to balance the sweetness of some of these songs with grittier sonics. So, while I might've used instruments like the harp, I also included some electric guitar on the sly. Mostly, I stuck very closely to organic instruments, as opposed to inorganic instruments. The idea was to elevate them and make them sound modern.
Ariel: Like the covers, the score doesn't attempt to reinvent the wheel too much. This is a show about an ordinary woman doing extraordinary things, so the music couldn't overpower her and her spirit in that way.
My approach definitely focused less on channeling the past and more on incorporating a contemporary sound. We didn't want it to feel like it was from the '30s or the '40s, but we also didn't want it to feel anachronistic and pull viewers out of the story. So, while I was inspired by certain techniques from the '40s like jazz voicings and improvisation, there's a lot of classical minimalism, avant-garde tension, and electronic influence in the music.
Are there any parallels you notice between music from the '30s and '40s, and music now? Este: I feel there's an
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
12/06/2026
YES Network and The Gotham Sports App will air seven Athletes Unlimited Softball...
12/06/2026
The United Football League will host its FAST Innovation Suite at the 2026 United Bowl presented by Credit One Bank on Saturday, June 13 at 3:00 p.m. ET at Audi...
12/06/2026
PTZOptics and LayerJot will present live demonstrations at InfoComm 2026 showing how natural-language AI prompting, robotic camera control, and on-device comput...
12/06/2026
MultiDyne Video and Fiber Optic Systems will exhibit at InfoComm 2026, featuring...
12/06/2026
Ateme has announced that Eurovision Services is using Ateme's software-based frame-rate conversion technology for international live event workflows. The de...
12/06/2026
Bitmovin and Simplestream have announced a partnership with Xperi to simplify the launch of OTT streaming services on TiVo OS smart TVs and devices. The collabo...
12/06/2026
Net Insight has announced that a multinational technology company is deploying a...
12/06/2026
MLB Players Inc., the business arm of the MLB Players Association, has announced a partnership with Athletes First to develop and sell brand partnerships across...
12/06/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D) and VuWall have announced the CommandKeyboard-Advanc...
12/06/2026
Comcast Smart Solutions announces a new smart technology deployment with Major L...
12/06/2026
Elevation Worship completed the initial leg of its Elevation Nights 2026 tour ...
12/06/2026
AJA Video Systems has announced KONA IP25 support for Colorfront Transkoder and ...
12/06/2026
Audinate Group Limited (ASX: AD8) will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth C7321, Ce...
12/06/2026
Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould has announced the appointment of Scott Adametz as Chief Technology Officer. The Pac-12 describes the hire as the first CTO appo...
12/06/2026
Grass Valley has announced AMPP Edge Live, a production system combining Grass Valley hardware, NVIDIA Blackwell GPU acceleration, and AMPP OS in a single platf...
12/06/2026
At one time a trailblazer with the launch of the Longhorn Network, the Universit...
12/06/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
12/06/2026
Chyron has announced PAINT 10.4, an update to its illustrated replay and sports ...
12/06/2026
SVP, Production Mark Gross: With the new schedule, with not having every Sunday night, it's given us an opportunity to take a step back and reimagine what ...
12/06/2026
For Televisa Technical Engineering Manager Roberto N nez Ibarra and the small team of 12 technicians and two production personnel at the IBC things are already ...
12/06/2026
Simple Steps to Better Acoustics - Taming The Small Room
Most of us mix in spare rooms and small spaces, where the acoustics fight us at every turn. At Gear...
12/06/2026
Latest addition expands vintage-inspired effects palette
Meris' Ottobit pedal range draws its inspiration from vintage gaming consoles, and the latest a...
12/06/2026
Soundbox-based chamber strings series expanded
Sonora Cinematic have just announced the launch of the second instalment in their Soundbox-based chamber stri...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
AJA Announces KONA IP25 Integration with Colorfront Software
Brie Clayton June 12, 2026
0 Comments
Collaboration enables uncompressed SMPTE ST 2110 I/O ...
12/06/2026
URSA Cine 12K LF Used to Create Visuals for STUTS' K-Arena Concert
Brie Clayton June 12, 2026
0 Comments
Organic visuals projected on a giant scre...
12/06/2026
MTI FILM Acquires Mango New Edit, Expanding its Global Post-Production Services ...
12/06/2026
AI Point Tracking Speeds Up Complex VFX Tracks in Mocha Pro
Jessie Electa Petrov June 12, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic point trac...
12/06/2026
Bitmovin, a provider of video streaming solutions, has partnered with Simplestream, a provider of OTT and broadcast solutions, and technology provider Xperi, to...
12/06/2026
Leostream Corporation, creator of the world-leading Leostream Remote Desktop Access Platform, today announced Jigsaw24, a leading B2B IT solutions provider wit...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/06/2026
How Aussie indie games and screen are levelling up with IP 11 June 2026
Ari Harrison, Pro Jank Footy
Head of Games Joey Egger and Ari Harrison of Umbrella sha...
12/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils First-Look Images from Villaflor, Santiago Mitre's New Film
Entertainment
12 June 2026
GlobalArgentina
Link copied to ...
12/06/2026
Back to All News
Cross the Boundaries of the Real World into the Spirit Realm i...
12/06/2026
With John Daro, DI Colourist at Warner Bros. Water Tower Color Tuesday 23 June, 10am-1pm or 3-6pm
Restar Corporation
Tokyo
Register here
John Daro is the ...
12/06/2026
Meet The Grumpy Onion Ireland's newest online sensation, all he wants is to ...
12/06/2026
RT stays Up All Night with brand new daily 2026 FIFA World Cup Vodcast
Adding to the fun around 2026 FIFA World Cup tournament, RT has launched a brand new d...
12/06/2026
A fentanyl countermeasure that adapts to combat future black-market drugs Scripps Research scientists developed a vaccine that teaches the immune system to rapi...
11/06/2026
The immense size of the tourney and its Atlantic-spanning operation also disting...
11/06/2026
Nielsen has released a new soccer fandom consumer research report, The Fans Behind The Game: FIFA World Cup 2026 Edition, examining the soccer audience in the...
Yesterday marked the premiere of A Small Light, a new limited series on National Geographic that tells the story of Miep Gies, the fearless heroine who helped protect Anne Frank and her family from the Nazis during World War II.
