Music of The Last of Us

A 56-year-old man with dark gray hair talking into a microphone, looking at something beneath the camera.
Argentine musician Gustavo Santaolalla composed the score for The Last of Us.

The music for the 2013 action-adventure survival horror video game The Last of Us, developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Computer Entertainment, was composed by Argentine musician Gustavo Santaolalla. Supplementary music for the game's downloadable content The Last of Us: Left Behind was composed by Santaolalla, Andrew Buresh, Anthony Caruso and Jonathan Mayer. Both soundtracks were produced by Santaolalla, Mayer, and Aníbal Kerpel, with separate segments recorded in both Los Angeles and Nashville.

Santaolalla, known for his minimalist approach to composing, was excited to work on the soundtrack due to the game's focus on the characters and story. The directors were inspired by his work and sought him out early in the game's development. The musician began composing thereafter, with few instructions from the development team on the tone that they intended. In collaboration with each other, the team and Santaolalla aimed to make the soundtrack emotional, as opposed to scary. Santaolalla used various instruments to compose the score, including some that were unfamiliar to him.

The soundtrack album for The Last of Us was released on iTunes in June 2013. Additional compositions, including some composed for Left Behind, were released on a second soundtrack in February 2014. Critical reception to the soundtracks was positive, as reviewers felt that the music connected appropriately with the gameplay. In particular, critics felt that the minimalist approach of the soundtrack's composition matched the gameplay. The game's music was nominated for numerous awards. Several tracks became popular and begot cover versions and live performances.