Esalen Massage DVD -- Truly Magnificent
The Esalen Massage Video DVD was filmed on location at the Esalen Institute. Esalen is located at the coastal center of the breathtakingly beautiful, rugged Big Sur region of California. Some indoor and several outdoor spots are shown with demonstrations on massage tables in the Huxley meeting room, at the cliff-side Hot Springs Bathhouse overlooking and forty feet above the Pacific Ocean on both the ground floor and the upper deck, on the cliff-edge swimming pool deck one hundred feet above the ocean surf, similarly on the nearby spacious luxuriant lawn, and within one of the lush gardens on this harmonious landscape rendering of the wild and the manicured. In this exquisite production, there are many spectacular scenes taken from a helicopter, as well as still pictures of Esalen's founders: Michael Murphy and Richard Price, and noted early Esalen presenters: Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Ida Rolf, Joseph Campbell, Sam Keen, Christine Stewart Price, and others; a fleeting view of the rustic redwood Lodge, views of the cascading Hot Springs Creek with redwood trees on its banks, a favorite charming meditation spot: the landing on the stairway from the Big House to the beach, and of other awe-inspiring spots on this magical property.
In this 85-minute production, nearly all thirty-six members of the Esalen Massage Crew appear, if not as givers, then as receivers, with some as both. Twenty-two, as givers, appear with first names on the screen, with ten as commentators supplementing the mellifluous, informative voice-over that guides the viewer through the total body massage. The world-famous classic Esalen massage moves are demonstrated in stepwise fashion with amazing grace and beauty. The idea of producing an instructional massage video at Esalen dates to at least February 1977, but not until May 1997 was such a product released. The viewer is completely captivated by the presentation in the same way as actually being at Esalen, for both are works of art. Delightful to the eye and uplifting to the spirit, one never tires of repeated viewings.
Said of this award-winning best-selling video production - "gorgeous, wonderful, beautiful, enlightening, the next best thing to learning at Esalen, the best instructional video on the market, for beginners and professionals alike!"
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Interesting introduction to massage
I found the soundtrack and the scenery very soothing and found the tape very easy to watch. Even with the "cuts" to different sessions, everything flowed well together. The narrator repeated information when necessary, so if you were performing a massage while following along, you wouldn't miss anything. I find this video to be a good introduction to a technique of massage or couple's massage. There are a few problems that I had with the video:
While all of the therapists behaved professionally on the video during each phase of the massage session, several of them were dressed inappropriately. And I also question the abdominal massages where there was no chest draping for the female clients. The "T" factor is not necessary in order to learn this technique!
The massage presentation was very good, despite those couple of drawbacks. I give it 3-1/2 stars.
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