Following the world premiere of HUMAN at the New York Gerneral Assembly of the United Nations on Saturday, Yann Arthus-Bertrand's documentary the whole world is talking about launches in Paris tonight at the iconic Grand Rex theatre.

The king of aerial landscape photography not only gives us the sweeping panoramas we've come to expect, but also gets up-close and personal with his subjects for a series of interviews by turns inspiring and heartbreaking. A truly global film, HUMAN was shot in 60 countries over three years as Arthus-Betrand documented the real-life stories of 2,020 people in 63 languages.

The score. composed by Armand Amar, is just as far-reaching, uniting some 47 soloists from around the world - including renowned Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour - with a symphony orchestra.

Tonight's launch event in Paris will be attended by three of these superlative soloists, from very different backgrounds, performing music from the film. Singers Gombodorj Byambajargal (Mongolia), Divna (Serbia) and Sarah Marielle Gaup (Sapmi) will be accompanied by the pianist and string quartet featured in the original film music.

A three-part extended version of the film is now on YouTube. 

HUMAN, the deeply moving soundtrack, is out 25 September. Listen to some of the breathtaking music here:

HUMAN is a film the world needs: the Koyaanisqatsi of our generation. The highly-anticipated follow-up to Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s HOME, viewed by more than 600 million people, this new documentary – with its stunning aerial landscapes and images of people from all walks of life – explores the harsh and beautiful truths of humanity on this planet.

The world-premiere screening will take place on 12 September at the United Nations headquarters in New York, in the presence of the Secretary General Mr Ban Ki-moon. On the same day, it will be made available to millions on YouTube in an extended three-part series.

Special screenings will also take place in France (La Fête de l'Humanité and at the Grand Rex theatre in Paris) and at the Venice Film Festival.

HUMAN is a hymn to human connections and the fragility of life on Earth as well as a cri de coeur for tolerance and compassion throughout the world, narrated through testimony from poverty-stricken peasants, refugees, death-row inmates and more – by turns thought-provoking, shocking, heart-breaking and inspiring.

Such a powerful subject needs a score that expresses the emotional core of the film. Director and cinematographer Arthus-Bertrand chose longtime collaborator Armand Amar, composer of the HOME soundtrack, to voice the vast ideas of HUMAN in the truly universal language of music. The epic, minimalist orchestral strings, exotic percussion and singers and instrumentalists drawn together from diverse ethnic and musical backgrounds are inseparable from the film’s unforgettable images.

Amar says he composed the score as “a global vision, a universe in osmosis with the film…The music I composed for the images of Mongolia in particular summarise the universe I wanted to evoke in this film.”

The original soundtrack features no fewer than 47 soloists, including the Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour.

“Traditional musics from around the world fascinate me endlessly, they touch me, they have a direct link with emotion," Amar continues. "For HUMAN, my idea was to create a resonance between the interviews and the songs or chants expressing the same emotion. I wanted hearts to open up to this music, I wanted sadness to open up and for nothing to be held back. HUMAN was one of the rare opportunities in my life as a film composer in which I could explore all these different cultures united from afar.”

HUMAN: the soundtrack, available 25 September.