Hans Zimmer is renowned for his inventive soundtrack textures; he's the composer who set Man of Steel to a chamber orchestra of pedal steel guitars and crowd-sourced Dark Knight Rises’ 100,000-voice chant via the Internet. So how would he handle Jesus? A clue came in 2013, when Hans admitted he’d tired of the electronic/organic sorcery he’s acclaimed for and yearned to explore traditional orchestral writing again. Thus, this big-screen project (produced in conjunction with the History Channel’s successful 10-hour miniseries The Bible) inspired Zimmer and frequent collaborator Lorne Balfe to effectively update one of filmdom’s oldest musical genres. The composers largely eschew dominant themes in favor of a stately, elegiac atmosphere that supports the album’s spoken-word narrative, frequently using the haunting contralto of former Dead Can Dance mainstay/past Zimmer collaborator Lisa Gerrard to deepen its ethereal sense of mystery. The collection also features four highlights from the miniseries’ song score, featured here in exclusive new remixes.