After forming in a literal blaze of burning churches, murder and suicide, black metal began branching out into more civilised activities by adding orchestral elements and operatic flourishes to its grim palette of buzzing guitars and screeching vocals. Pioneered in the mid-'90s by the likes of Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth—hailing from black metal’s spiritual homes of Norway and England, respectively—symphonic black metal didn’t initially incorporate actual classical musicians to achieve its dramatic atmosphere (though Cradle of Filth’s debut notably features a session cellist). Instead, the bands relied upon keyboard sound banks to recreate the strings, woodwinds and choir vocals heard on early genre milestones like Emperor’s In the Nightside Eclipse and Moonspell’s Irreligious. That would change in later years, most notably when Dimmu Borgir employed composer Gaute Storaas, a full orchestra and the Schola Cantorum choir—more than 100 musicians and singers in total—on their ambitious 2010 album, Abrahadabra.