The Sixth Sense (soundtrack)

James Newton Howard composed the film score in his first collaboration with Shyamalan.^[1] Howard recalled that Shyamalan was working with another composer, but the producers needed to replace him for some reason. The producer Kathleen Kennedy recommended Howard's name, as the composer had worked in some of the productions and wanted him to see the film.^[2] He considered it a "huge game-change" moment, creatively on working with Shyamalan, whom he met during the post-production. Howard was "jaw dropped" on watching the climax which was tempted with classical music and agreed to be a part of the film. It was written and recorded within six weeks.^[1]

Jonathan Broxton of Movie Music UK wrote "The Sixth Sense represents a masterful exercise in musical tension building and musical tension release and, although it lacks a memorable theme, nevertheless serves to provide an aural reminder of a great film."^[3]

Christian Clemmensen of Filmtracks wrote "the music for The Sixth Sense is easy to respect, but without the thematic splendor or instrumental creativity that Howard would provide for subsequent Shyamalan films, it stands as more of a functional work rather than an inspiring standalone piece."^[4] Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote "it is the movie's treacly soundtrack by James Newton Howard, the Hollywood maestro du jour for smearing on goo whenever it's time to clench back tears."^[5] Heather Phares of AllMusic wrote "James Newton Howard's orchestral score for The Sixth Sense manages to capture the film's eerie, supernatural feel as well as its emotional impact, providing an equal amount of bone-chilling and tear-jerking musical moments."^[6] James Barry of Soundtrack.net wrote "In brief, this is an album which perfectly captures the mood of a film whose success was almost entirely due to it's [sic] mood. James Newton Howard proves himself once again a master of his craft."^[7]

Credits adapted from liner notes:^[8]