What is a "wall"?  I guess you need to understand what a wall is before you can try to go through it.  There are the walls that we see daily that separate rooms in a house or the outside world from within the house (or surrounding area).  There are also emotional walls that people put up to distance themselves from others.  Then there are also those metaphysical walls that people put up not just from other people, but from any type of outside influences. In music, that wall includes the closure of our minds (i.e., putting up a "wall") between us and music from other cultures -- just because it is different.  The wall in many cases is due to our own cultures and influences while we are younger.  The classic example is Opera.  Most of us grow up where opera is hardly heard around our houses and is seen by our contemporaries as well as portrayed on TV and movies as boring, to say the least.  However, once you break through the wall that keeps you from actually listening and appreciating the music, it is not as bad as you may have first thought -- but you need to first break through that wall.

 

This DVD entitled 20 Ways to Walk Through Walls dares you to break down and walk through some of the walls we have constructed against music of different cultures, languages and sounds.  If you dare to take a sledgehammer to your cultural obstructions, you might find yourself immersed in some really good sounds that you have been missing out from before.  A variety of sounds and beats awaits those eager to stretch the limitations of their listening indulgences.

 

The artists included on the DVD are as diverse as the music and countries they originate from.  Music from Brazil, Timbuktu, the United Kingdom, France, Iran, the Balkans, Kinshasa, Belgium, Romania, Congo and Gypsy music from throughout Europe.  The diversity of the artists backgrounds provide the listener to a great sampling of music from the various regions.  However, one must also keep in mind that the artists are in many ways on the fringe of the music scenes within their own genre.  The influences of the music and sounds may be taken from their respective locations, but the music itself varies within their own unique categories.  By this I mean that the types of songs vary from modern jazz to contemporary to spiritual to traditional.  So do not expect the music from Brazil to be a Latin dance beat, however, you will be able to feel the Brazilian influences within the music.

 

The DVD is well produced and many of the artists are very enjoyable to listen to.  It is a great diversion from the usual stuff we listen to.  It is also very "easy" listening.  The artists put their songs right out front without fluffing them up with a ton of commercialized noise.  Most songs may not be a hit at a dance club, but if you are driving in a car or sitting around at home or in your office, it is the perfect listening album for just sitting and enjoying the music (even if you cannot understand the words being spoken).

 

It is time to break through your listening walls and give this DVD a try and enjoy.