The new Harry Potter series faces a hurdle hardly anyone is talking about

On March 25, the first trailer for HBO’s Harry Potter series dropped out of nowhere. As expected, reactions so far have been mixed. Still, one thing has stood out to me: for many people, the quality of the series seems to hinge above all on the cast, the set design and the script. Those are of course all crucial factors, but one point that is likely to matter especially to nostalgic viewers often gets overlooked: the music.

With a brand like Harry Potter, nostalgia is created not only by robes, wands, and Hogwarts backdrops, but also by soundscapes that have been etched deep into fans’ memories over the years. When I hear Hedwig’s Theme, I immediately get that warm, familiar feeling – similar to hearing a song you listened to countless times in your youth, one that suddenly takes you right back to a certain moment in your life.

You probably will not get that feeling while watching HBO’s Harry Potter series, because instead of relying on the familiar musical motifs from the films, this new adaptation is getting an original score by Hans Zimmer and Bleeding Fingers. Even though I personally find that a little disappointing, it does not necessarily have to be a bad thing. Harry Potter fans do not want a simple copy from HBO, but a reinterpretation with its own creative identity. The music is likely to be a crucial factor in shaping that identity – and who knows, perhaps in a few years the soundtrack of the series adaptation will evoke similar nostalgic feelings in Potterheads as the film score does today.

The magic was always in the music, too

The eight Harry Potter films starring Daniel Radcliffe were musically shaped by four composers. John Williams wrote the scores for the first three films and created the franchise’s most famous leitmotif with Hedwig’s Theme. He was followed by Patrick Doyle (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), Nicholas Hooper (Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince) and Alexandre Desplat (Deathly Hallows – Part 1 and Part 2). Pieces such as Dumbledore’s Army from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix or Obliviate from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 helped give each phase of the film series its own distinct musical profile.

Because the series’ music will inevitably be measured against the film scores, Hans Zimmer is facing an extremely difficult task here. Still, there is every reason to hope he is up to it. After all, Zimmer is one of the best-known film composers of our time and is famous for emotional, powerful and often highly distinctive soundscapes. His work can be heard in films such as The Lion King, Gladiator, Inception, Interstellar and Dune.

In the end, the new Harry Potter series will not be judged only by how Hogwarts looks or whether the new cast is convincing. It will also be judged on whether it strikes the same emotional chord as the films – and music plays a key role in that. Hans Zimmer and the composing collective therefore face the difficult task of creating something original that does not feel like a mere copy, while still capturing the magic that so many fans associate with Harry Potter.