Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori, the legendary duo behind Halo's iconic scores, delivered one of gaming's most ambitious orchestral soundtracks for Bungie's next franchise. Recorded with a full orchestra and choir, the Destiny Original Soundtrack is a massive work that builds an entire mythology through music alone.
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"The Traveler" opens with the kind of awe-inspiring grandeur that immediately tells you this universe is vast, ancient, and worth exploring. "Sepiks Prime" became an instant fan favorite -- its driving percussion and menacing choir scoring the first strike's final boss fight became the defining sound of early Destiny.
"Cabal Stomp" brings militaristic brass and pounding rhythms for the franchise's space rhino empire, while "The World's Grave" drenches the Hive's lunar tunnels in dread. The "Excerpt" tracks -- from the Hope, the Ecstasy, the Tribulation, the Rose, the Ruin -- form a suite-within-a-suite that O'Donnell conceived as movements of a larger symphonic work.
The emotional core of the soundtrack lies in tracks like "The Last Array," whose triumphant melody scoring the reconnection of Earth's communication network became one of the most memorable musical moments in the game. "Guardian" and "Traveler's Promise" carry the weight of purpose that defines the player's journey, and "The Stranger" wraps the Exo Stranger's mysterious appearances in enigmatic, haunting tones.
This is the score that launched a universe, and despite the well-documented legal disputes surrounding its creation, its quality remains undeniable.