The Philip Glass Ensemble has been performing the music to the film "Koyaanisqatsi," live with screenings of the film, since the year after the film's release in 1982. This was later complemented by the performance of music from the film's 1987 followup "Powaqqatsi." So far, these cinema concerts have been given before more than 5 million people worldwide.
Upcoming performances in Tokyo will be conducted by Michael Riesman, musical director of the Philip Glass Ensemble, and Glass will play keyboards. The next film in the series, "Naqoyqatsi," was released in America in 2001, and will open in theaters here in February.
What gives these films such longevity?