Alum Esin Aydıngöz Pens ‘Nevermore Alma Mater’ for Netflix’s Wednesday
Jenna Ortega stars as the lead character in the Netflix original series Wednesday.
Image courtesy of Netflix
Dating all the way back to the iconic finger-snapping theme song used in the original black-and-white TV production of The Addams Family, music has always played a key role in setting the spooky vibes within the Addams cinematic universe. This trend has continued for both seasons of the Netflix original series Wednesday. Directed by Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetlejuice), the show focuses on the elder Addams child’s coming-of-age experiences at Nevermore Academy, and stars Jenna Ortega, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzmán, and more.
This season's soundtrack gives the Wednesday treatment to songs such as "Zombie" (the Cranberries) and "Don't Fear the Reaper" (Blue Öyster Cult), and features performances from Zeta-Jones, TikTok star Bella Poarch, and many more. Among the faculty this season is Nevermore’s newest teacher, Rosalind Rotwood, played by Mother Monster herself, Lady Gaga, who’s newest single “Dead Dance,” was written for the show.
Watch the video for "Dead Dance" by Lady Gaga, directed by Tim Burton:
Similar to how a well-placed song like Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)" boosted the tension of Stranger Things, the music of Wednesday aids the plot and enhances the emotional impact. In a key scene in season one, Wednesday, played by Ortega, goes full zombie-tango at the school dance, a moment that boldly announced her devil-may-care confidence to her friends and enemies alike. Both Ortega’s dance and the obscure 1981 song “Goo Goo Muck” went viral, bringing the song’s artist, psychobilly band the Cramps, into the mainstream as a result.
From Berklee to Nevermore
Composer, arranger, and conductor Esin Aydıngöz
Image by Chris Barry
Season two also makes its musical mark with “Nevermore Alma Mater,” the supernatural academy’s anthem that appears in the first episode, cowritten by composer, arranger, and conductor Esin Aydıngöz BM ’17. “The lyrics were written on top of my melody,” she said in a recent interview with Anadolu Agency. “It was surreal to hear Catherine Zeta-Jones sing it, because years ago at Berklee I studied Chicago, the musical she starred in.”
Aydıngöz is no stranger to Wednesday, as she arranged the cello version of the Rolling Stones' “Paint It Black” that Ortega’s character performs in season one. Her arrangement has nearly 43 million streams on Spotify and was nominated for a Grammy for Best Arrangement, Instrumental, or A Capella.
Originally from Istanbul, Turkey, Aydıngöz double majored in contemporary writing and production as well as film and media scoring at Berklee, and interned at Hans Zimmer’s studio in LA after graduating. She served as assistant chair of screen scoring in 2022 and has taught courses for Berklee Online. In addition to growing a long list of film and media scoring credits, she’s collaborated with Disney, Pixar, Booker T. Jones, Lalo Schifrin, and more.
