Koyaanisqatsi: Live with the Philip Glass Ensemble

In 1975, two visionary artists—film director Godfrey Reggio and composer Philip Glass—came together to create Koyaanisqatsi, the first film in the QATSI trilogy. Named after the Hopi word meaning “life out of balance,” Koyaanisqatsi is an apocalyptic vision of the collision of urban life and technology versus the environment. Co-presented by the Lensic and SITE SANTA FE as part of the Innovative Thinker Series, the film comes to life at the Lensic with the score performed live by the Philip Glass Ensemble.

Often said to be meditative, the score for Koyaanisqatsi requires extremely precise concentration for live performance.  The experience of the film is immeasurably enhanced by the intensity needed and the massive sound from the Ensemble for the score’s performance.  Together, Koyaanisqatsi is a multi-level experience that varies with each performance.

Philip Glass has always been interested in forging a new and deeply mutual relationship within film and music.  Unlike conventional films which are completed before the musical score is written, Philip and filmmaker Godfrey Reggio worked together to form Koyaanisqatsi.  From creative discussions with Godfrey, Philip wrote musical pieces that were paced by his very personal musical vision.  Michael Riesman created musical demos in the studio which Godfrey’s team would listen to with portable headphones while filming and editing found footage.  In this way, the music and film were created without separation.