Set during the first outbreak of the bubonic plague in England, Black Death is a dark horror adventure movie that features a highly original score by Christian Henson. In his third collaboration with director Christopher Smith, Henson (whose previous scores include The Secret of Moonacre and Triangle) has created a sonic world that fuses a modern approach to film scoring with a strikingly authentic sound. Henson uses modern instruments, including a guitar quartet, and unusual playing techniques such as singing through a traditional tuba or playing the violin in a “primitive” viol-like style...

Black Death is another impressive score from the creative mind of Christian Henson. What's most noticeable about the music is that Henson's strange use of instruments actually fits in extremely well and transports the listener back to olde England without leaning on any well worn cliches.

While there are a number of themes that Henson weaves in and out of this score, none of them dominate and what we end up with is an impressive array of musical styles and moods.

While this music may not suit the tastes of lovers of conventional soundtracks, there are enough interesting themes to keep most soundtrack collectors happy.

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Darren Rea