The Land Before Time (soundtrack)

Peter Fawthrop of AllMusic wrote "The Land Before Time would hardly have come across as eloquently and mystical had it not been for James Horner's spectacular orchestral score which in another time would have made many classical greats take notice. So full of beauty is it, so commanding of our attention, that it works without the visual footage in the same way the classic music behind Fantasia does. Horner, The London Sympony Orchestra and The King's College Choir of England bring an all-encompassing sense of wonder [...] The film, helped greatly by the music, seems almost like a face-to-face meeting between Creation and Evolution, though both sides will agree on one thing: it is amazing."^[10] Filmtracks wrote "Aside from the arguably lackluster conclusion to the score, The Land Before Time is an otherwise outstanding children's genre work that is always a joy to hear on album [...] The massive symphonic ambience of the soundtrack as a whole is perhaps its best attribute for the casual listener. Horner's long cues and countless takes of each one allowed the musicians to really emote in their performances; the London Symphony Orchestra proves its credentials in these regards as not a single major flub is to be heard. Even aside from the clear and potentially obnoxious Prokofiev emulations that will raise memories of "Peter and the Wolf" without fail, The Land Before Time is among Horner's most "classical" scores, not just in the length of his cues but in the smooth development of each idea for great lengths. The work does have a few well-placed synchronization points, blasts from brass that unsettle the listening experience, but they are not frequent."^[11]

James Southall of Movie Wave wrote "The Land Before Time is one of James Horner's very finest achievements - all of his scores for animations are good, a couple are great, but this one is something else. It stands alongside his greatest contributions to film music and is an essential ingredient in any Horner fan's collection."^[12] Jonathan Broxton of Movie Music UK wrote "The Land Before Time is easily one of James Horner’s most accomplished works, and is an essential for anyone wanting to understand why his music remains so beloved."^[13] Sophie Monks Kaufman of Little White Lies wrote "James Horner’s music is the sound of an absence made present. It is the sound of a bond that by all rational accounts should be severed but is saved by the depth of its impression on memory."^[14] Sean Wilson of Den of Geek listed it as one of the best scores, adding "Horner was tailor-made to score The Land Before Time, conjuring a wrenching tapesty of happiness and sadness in which the choral work in particular really gets the water-works going."^[15]