Wow... Just, wow... This is so awesome, so rich in texture, so, sooo big orchestral symphony for a pretty good film! Yes, I call it a symphony, which develops its thematic material into a wonderful finale of over 10 minutes lasting cue called Valhalla/Viking Victory!!! This score was the one that made me a fan of Jerry Goldsmith and his powerful and emotional filmmusic. Rare have I heard of a composer as multi-talented as Goldsmith and The 13th Warrior is a great example of his style to create an effective main theme - this time its called "Old Bagdad" - and then to develop it and create cues out of that theme. Old Bagdad has remained one of my all time favourite cues along with the long Valhalla/Viking Victory!!
The score is full of memorable highlights but I have to mention the use of strings especially in such cues as Exiled, Swing Across and Underwater Escape. What a swirling effect does that create.... And just listen the majesty of Semantics, The Great Hall and Mother Wendol's Cave!! Wow!! The score has also its "tender" moments in the beginning of Exiled, in the end of Valhalla and in A Useful Servant, and I think that's just enough because the album itself is so beautiful!!
My rating: *****