Behold a Pale Horse

Behold a Pale Horse is an extremely diverse song included in the Halo 3: Original Soundtrack. The track includes the songs "Reconciled", "Overcome", "Small Victory" and the title song "Behold a Pale Horse". It plays during the level The Ark when Forward Unto Dawn lands. The section "Overcome" is sometimes heard during the final wave of a round in Firefight in Halo 3: ODST.

Score Synopsis

Behold a Pale Horse This track starts with it's title song "Behold a Pale Horse", which is a revisit of the Halo CE track On a Pale Horse. It starts out much the same way the original starts, with steady, accented chords voiced by the strings along with low string pizzicato. The first difference from the original is when the strings are joined by piccolo and choral when the ensemble plays a melody-variation of the monk chant from the Halo Theme in the accented chords. A heavily accented part follows with the addition of brass, finishing out the song. This section lasts 1 minute and 34 seconds.

Reconciled The next section is another Halo CE song, a theme heard in the first part of the Truth and Reconciliation Suite. "Reconciled" begins with low strings and brass on a low note as the rest of the brass play an epic sounding theme. This is then joined by more strings, the violins playing arpeggios while the low strings and brass play phrases similar to what they play in the Halo Theme. A more peaceful section follows, mainly played by strings with the addition of chorus; the theme is a variation on the "A Walk in the Woods" theme. Reconciled is 1 minute and 37 seconds.

Overcome At 3:10, a mysterious-sounding melody starts. This effect is synthesized to create a distant like ambiance. Drums join in, and the motif repeats. Gradually, the section becomes more minor and gloomy, yet with a faint air of hopefulness about it.

Small Victory At 4:54, the next part interrupts, and a rapid melody starts, much more stimulating then the previous sections. It is based mostly off of the Halo Theme, with strings, drums, and choir. Small Victory runs for 45 seconds and stops as suddenly as it started.

This piece is a remake of On a Pale Horse of the Halo: Original Soundtrack.

It runs for 5 minutes and 38.442 seconds (5:38.442).

Trivia

• This is the most recognisable piece in the Halo Soundtrack.
• This could be relating to Revelation 6:8, how the English translation reads: "And behold, a pale horse, and he who sat on it, his name was Death. Hades followed with him. Authority over one fourth of the earth, to kill with the sword, with famine, with death, and by the wild animals of the earth was given to him.", referring to the end of the world.
• Under the Dictionary definition, Behold A Pale Horse it simply testifies as Death in the written text.