“There Must Be an Angel”

“There Must Be an Angel” is the Eurythmics song heard behind a voice on a tape that Smilla and her companion examine. Its faint musical trace becomes a practical clue: the listener identifies the recording with the Northern Star at Thule Air Base and then recognizes the piano as a Yamaha grand.

The Song as a Recording Clue

The song is not introduced as a performance in the present scene. It survives as background sound from a previous recording, audible behind the voice when the tape is played again. The listener isolates that residue and identifies it as pop music, specifically “There Must Be an Angel.” Smilla remains silent while he listens closely, leaving the recognition to emerge from the sound itself.

Location and Identification

The music points toward a specific place. The listener has already narrowed the possibilities to one location, Thule Air Base, where the club is called the Northern Star: a restaurant divided into two sections, with a dance hall. He then adds a more precise acoustic detail, identifying the piano as a Yamaha grand. Together, the song and instrument turn a fragment of recorded music into evidence connecting the voice to a particular venue.

Narrative Significance

The song’s importance lies less in its lyrics or emotional associations than in its material presence on the tape. A leftover layer from an earlier recording, it carries information that the voice alone does not provide. The scene’s careful progression—from replaying the tape, to hearing the pop song, to identifying the piano—shows how attentive listening can convert background noise into a lead in Smilla’s investigation.