Truth and Reconciliation Suite
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Truth and Reconciliation Suite is the second track in Halo: Original Soundtrack. It is composed of four untitled movements: a “reveal music” (0:00-1:50), a variation of the Halo Theme string melody (1:51-4:48), an ambiance piece (4:49-7:14) and a rock remix of the Halo Theme (7:15-8:25).
The full track made its debut during the Halo: Combat Evolved gameplay demo at Microsoft Gamestock 2001.[1]
The entire track was arranged into Honest Negotiation Suite in Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary Original Soundtrack, though the final section was replaced with an extended version of Rock in a Hard Place (an arrangement of Rock Anthem for Saving the World) rather than a new rendition of the original rock remix.
Overview
Reveal music
The “reveal music”[2] (1:50) opens with vocals and synth ambiance, followed by a triumphant brass fanfare accompanied by low strings playing the triplet rhythm from the Halo Theme. Strings, vocals and synth then take over with serene and tranquil variations of the fanfare as a melody. They fade out and the piece end with a drumroll.
The first seventeen seconds first plays in the campaign level Halo, during the cinematic in which John-117 activates the underground light bridge. It plays again in the level The Silent Cartographer, in the cinematic in which John-117 activates the Cartographer. It plays for the third and final time in the level Two Betrayals when John-117 first pilots a Type-26 Banshee outside the control room. While the fanfare plays in the campaign level Halo, at the opening of the chapter “Reunion Tour”, and in Two Betrayals, when John-117 exits the control room, the serene melody does not play in-game at any point.
The piece, except for the opening synth effects, was arranged into Reconciled (from Behold a Pale Horse) in Halo 3: Original Soundtrack. The piece, along with the following section and a new rendition of the Halo Theme, was arranged into Truth and Reconciliation in Halo: Legends Original Soundtrack.
Halo Theme string melody variation
A variation of the string melody from the Halo Theme (2:57) adapts the same string melody from the Halo Theme, albeit featuring a longer string section and omitting the Gregorian chant ending. Instead, the high strings take over for a climatic melody, accompanied by vocals. The piece ends with low strings echoing the main melody, and high strings fading out.
The piece, featuring an extended percussion solo section, debuted in the Halo E3 2000 trailer, when the two teams of Marines make their way to the Forerunner building. In Halo: Combat Evolved, it first plays, without the Qawwali-like solo, in the campaign level The Silent Cartographer, during the opening cinematic of the level and continues into the gameplay sequence afterwards, but fades out midway. The full piece plays in the level The Maw, during the final chapter in which John-117 escapes the UNSC Pillar of Autumn on a Warthog after Echo 419 is shot down.
The piece was arranged and incorporated into One Final Effort, featuring additional piano parts and a different ending, in Halo 3: Original Soundtrack. Furthermore, Halo Finale (from the track Greatest Journey) is a full arrangement of the piece, and plays during the Warthog run in Halo 3 campaign level Halo. The piece, along with the previous section and a new rendition of the Halo Theme, was arranged into Truth and Reconciliation in Halo: Legends Original Soundtrack. In the Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary Original Soundtrack, there are two arrangements of this piece: one in Installation 04, and one in Honest Negotiation Suite.
Ambiance
The ambiance piece (2:25) cuts in with eerie ambiance on synth and strings. Vocals briefly join in with muted percussion. High strings briefly play a rising progression before returning to the eerie ambiance. Sirens sounds from Shadow fade in, gradually growing louder in volume before fading out, with strings holding until the end.
Like the previous piece, the ambiance piece debuted in the 2000 E3 trailer, when the Marines were exploring the interior of the Forerunner structure. In Halo: Combat Evolved, the piece first plays in the campaign level Halo, when John-117 arrives at the underground light bridge, with the siren sounds playing when he approaches the control panel. It plays again, albeit without the siren sounds, in the level The Truth and Reconciliation, when John-117 approaches the brig holding Captain Keyes, and in the level The Silent Cartographer, during and after the “Shafted” chapter cinematic. The section before the sirens play in the ending cinematic of the level Assault on the Control Room, when Cortana begins accessing the Core in the Halo's Control Room.
Halo Theme rock remix
The rock remix (1:10) cuts in with an electric guitar riff, quickly followed by the percussion from the Halo Theme. The electric guitar continues with riffs in accompaniment to the percussion and strings, and ends with the Gregorian chant from the Halo Theme.
The track is found exclusively in the soundtrack, and thus cannot be heard in any part of Halo: Combat Evolved.
Production notes
- The name of the track alludes to the eponymous Covenant CCS-class battlecruiser Truth and Reconciliation, which also serves as the namesake for a campaign level, an achievement, and the Halo Legends rendition of this soundtrack.
- The track name were later referenced by the names Reconciled (from Behold a Pale Horse) in Halo 3: Original Soundtrack and Unreconciled (from Tip of the Spear) in Halo: Reach Original Soundtrack
Sources
- ^ YouTube - Martin O’Donnell, Halo Gamestock 2001 (Retrieved on May 27, 2021)
- ^ YouTube - IGN, Halo: Combat Evolved Devs React to Speedrun (Martin O’Donnell, Marcus Lehto) (Retrieved on May 27, 2021)
