The Shape of Things to Come theme

This theme, also referred to as the “Passacaglia“, “Allegro“, or “Opera House theme“, is one of the few recurring motifs in Battlestar Galactica — along with “Worthy of Survival” — not associated with a particular character or group of characters. Appearing in the first season soundtrack as “Passacaglia” after the Spanish and Italian musical form that it follows, the theme was first introduced over the opening montage of episode “Kobol’s Last Gleaming, Part 1“. In “Kobol’s Last Gleaming, Part 2”, it plays as Baltar has a vision amid the ruins of the Opera House on Kobol of that structure as it was during Kobol’s glory days. He is informed by his internal Number Six that the mysterious infant he sees within — apparently Hera Agathon — is “the first of a new generation of God’s children” and “the face of the shape of things to come.” The theme also accompanies Number Three’s visions of the Final Five set in the Opera House in “Hero“, but its usage is not limited to the Opera House setting: in “Home, Part 2“, “Pegasus”, and “Unfinished Business” it accompanies emotionally resonant scenes that concern the fate of characters or their relationships. In the third season soundtrack, it features in the track “Violence and Variations”, where it is interwoven with Lee and Kara’s love theme, and “Under the Wing.” The final version serves as the outro to “An Easterly View”, which plays as Admiral Adama sits next to Laura Roslin’s grave in the series finale.

Each major variation of this theme is in a different meter: “Passacaglia” is in 3/4, “The Shape of Things to Come” is in 6/8 and “Allegro” is in 4/4.

We’ll be seeing Passacaglia and Allegro in the future as well.