Glass: Naqoyqatsi (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

1	Naqoyqatsi / Philip Glass Ensemble 7:56
2	Primacy of Number / Philip Glass Ensemble 6:52
3	Mass Man / Philip Glass Ensemble 9:48
4	New World / Philip Glass Ensemble 3:04
5	Religion / Philip Glass Ensemble 9:01
6	Media Weather / Philip Glass Ensemble 7:54
7	Old World / Philip Glass Ensemble 3:08
8	Intensive Time / Philip Glass Ensemble 8:09
9	Point Blank / Philip Glass Ensemble 11:17
10	The Vivid Unknown / Philip Glass Ensemble 7:08
11	Definition / Philip Glass Ensemble 2:50

Barnes & Noble

Naqoyqatsi wraps up Godfrey Reggio's "Qatsi" trilogy in a big way, at least as far as the film's score is concerned. Minimalist composer Philip Glass has been the voice of the innovative documentary series since it began in 1983 with Koyaanisqatsi and continued with 1988's Powaqqatsi, his characteristic style of mechanical rhythms, static harmonies, and broken-chord figuration enhancing the powerful, collage-like imagery of the films. Glass is an old hand at writing soundtracks (a five-disc set on Nonesuch collects this music), yet with Naqoyqatsi, he adds a new element: a solo cello, played by the incomparable Yo-Yo Ma. The result -- at least when heard apart from the film's imagery -- is a kind of minimalist cello concerto, for Ma's expressive presence is heard throughout the score, backed by members of the Philip Glass Ensemble and a full orchestra. The 11 sections range in style from the intensely rhythmic ("Primacy of Numbers," "Point Blank") to the atmospheric and ethereal ("New World," "Old World") to the delicately lyrical ("Religion," "Media Weather"). "The Vivid Unknown" is the musical high point, acting as a kind of cadenza for Ma. Largely unaccompanied, it is highly expressive music that suggests the solo cello works of Bach and Britten. "Definition" closes the score as it began: with voices eerily intoning "Naqoyqatsi," the ominous thumping of a beating heart, dark orchestral chords, and, soaring above, the lovely lyric lines of Ma's solo cello. EJ Johnson

Gramophone

The performance is superb and beautifully recorded. Nobody wth an interest in Glass should hesitate. Ivan Moody