The soundtrack for Inuyasha: Swords of an Honorable Ruler contains thirty-five tracks of background music that appeared in the film. In Japan, the soundtrack was issued individually. However, in the United States, the soundtrack can only be acquired if you buy the complete box set of the Inuyasha movies, which includes both the DVDs of the four films and the CDs of their accompanying soundtrack albums.

The pieces on the disc were composed and conducted by Kaoru Wada, and these pieces are in the same league as the pieces he composed for Affections Touching Across Time and The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass. When listening to the music, you can hear that Wada’s compositions are in the same league as film scores done by such film composers as John Williams. According to the booklet that came with the Inuyasha movie box set, the following instruments are used to help bring Inuyasha: Swords of an Honorable Ruler to life: flute, oboe, clarinet, fagotto, horns, trumpet, trombone, tuba, timpani, percussion, harp, strings, shinobue, nokan, shakuhachi, biwa, nijugen, Japanese drum, tsugaru shamisen, and a synthesizer. This combination of instruments helps to create the unique sound that’s been associated with the background music for the Inuyasha franchise.

When I listened to this CD, I had it running as background music as I worked on other things. The score Kaoru Wada composed for Swords of an Honorable Ruler is very effective as background music, because for me, the music would disappear into the background as I worked on other things. However, this isn’t a bad thing, since this music was composed with the intent of being used for the background; it wasn’t composed to grab the listener’s attention and distract them from the film.

If you’re a fan of the music in Inuyasha: Swords of an Honorable Ruler, then this soundtrack is worth tracking down. If you enjoy the films but don’t already own them on DVD, then I would recommend purchasing the complete box set of the Inuyasha movies. At retail, this set seems to sell for anywhere between $30 and $80. If you’re interested in purchasing the set, then it would be worth your time to shop around and find the best deal. However, if you want the soundtrack but already own the DVD of the film, then your best bet would be to track down a Japanese import CD of the soundtrack.