Bridgerton's first season landed on Netflix on Christmas Day 2020 and was immediately met by mild hysteria from audiences across the world. The bodice-ripper became the most popular Netflix series of all time, with Netflix's CEO announcing that a record 82 million subscribers had watched the programme during its first month on the platform.
The music of Bridgerton was highly talked about, with Kris Bowers penning string quartet arrangements of pop songs by the likes of Taylor Swift and Shawn Mendes.
But what will the second series have in store for us?
Who wrote the soundtrack to Bridgerton?
American composer and pianist Kris Bowers was responsible for scoring the first series of the Netflix show. He composed both the lush orchestral score and the pastiche string quartet arrangements of modern pop songs, which were performed by the Vitamin String Quartet.
Bowers has previously composed scores for film, TV and video games. His best known score is for the Academy Award-winning 2018 film Green Book, inspired by a tour of the Deep South by African American pianist Don Shirley and his driver. The film blended Bowers's original score with recordings of Shirley himself.
The score for the first series of Bridgerton was recorded remotely during the Covid-19 pandemic, with just eight musicians recording themselves at home. These recordings were then layered on top of one another to create a thick orchestral sound.
He wrote a theme for the protagonist Daphne, which was then expanded upon for the rest of the series. Much of the score is fairly minimalist, with simple strings and pared-back orchestrations, but when the drama heightens – and a layer or two of clothing is being ripped off – the percussion is added and the upper ranges of the strings are used to create a swelling effect.
Bowers also wrote a shared theme for the two protagonists, which is played when they are together and in love. This is slowly brought in throughout the earlier scenes of the series, as they get to know one another.
It has not yet been announced whether Kris Bowers will return to score the second season of Bridgerton. We'll be sure to update you when we know more.
Which are the pop songs that are covered in season 1 of Bridgerton?
Kris Bowers's witty string quartet arrangements of pop songs became a prominent part of the narrative, creating a self-aware form of tongue-in-cheek pastiche.
The following tracks were arranged for the show's first season:
- thank u, next (Ariana Grande)
- Girls Like You (Maroon 5)
- In My Blood (Shawn Mendes)
- bad guy (Billie Eilish)
- Strange (Celeste)
- Wildest Dreams (Taylor Swift)
What pieces of classical music are featured in Bridgerton?
As well as Kris Bowers's original score for the show, there are also snippets of well known pieces of music – most of which were written at vastly different periods in history to when Bridgerton is set.
A few of the works of classical music featured in the programme are:
- Shostakovich's Jazz Suite No. 2
- Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffman
- Beethoven's Symphony No. 5
- Beethoven's 'Waldstein' Sonata
- Bach's Cello Suite No. 6, recomposed by Peter Gregson
- Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, recomposed by Max Richter
What will season 2 of Bridgerton be about?
The first series of Bridgerton centred around the love story between Daphne Bridgerton (played by Phoebe Dynevor) and the Duke of Hastings (played by René-Jean Page), but the sequel is likely to head in a different direction, due to the fact that René-Jean Page has announced his exit from the show.
Season 2 of Bridgerton will instead focus on Daphne's brother Viscount Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) who embarks on his quest for love. The early teasers of the series suggest that he might be about to embark on a (somewhat complicated) romance with Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley).
Sharma's family will also feature in the programme, starring Charithra Chandran as Edwina Sharma and Shelley Conn as Lady Mary Sharma.
Bridgerton season 2 release date
The second series of the hit Netflix drama Bridgerton is due to arrive on our screens on 25 March 2022.
First look images of the second season of Bridgerton have been released.
Watch the trailer for season 2 of Bridgerton
Is Bridgerton based on a book?
The Netflix series is based on a collection of eight novels known as the Bridgerton Series by American romance author Julia Quinn. The first season predominantly follows the first book, The Duke and I, with a few plot changes.
The second series seems to be following second book in the series, The Viscount Who Loved Me, which focuses on Anthony Bridgerton. In the book, he pursues a debutante called Edwina Sheffield, whose name appears to be changed in the show to be Edwina Sharma.
Where can you stream the soundtrack to Bridgerton?
Kris Bowers's soundtrack to the first season of Bridgerton is available now to stream on Spotify and Apple Music.
You can also stream the Vitamin String Quartet's album of pop song covers, which appeared on the first season of Bridgerton, on Spotify and Apple Music.
Can you buy the soundtrack to Bridgerton?
You can buy the soundtrack from Amazon.
If you wanted to play the soundtrack on the piano, sheet music of the Bridgerton score is also being sold on Sheet Music Direct.
When will season 2 of Bridgerton be released on Netflix?
The second series of Bridgerton is due to arrive on Netflix in 2022. The exact release date is not yet known.
You can watch the first season of Bridgerton on Netflix now.
