Sabre class this Saturday

There's a sabre practise session this Saturday 3rd May 7-10pm at the Masonic Hall, Inverurie.

Alford class, time change - changed

The Alford class will revert to a 7pm start from 6th May until the last week of term, 17th June.

Sabre Success and SENI

Paolo and Davina have found a good new supplier for the sabres which are best for our Northern Sabre Form, so I am listing them here: http://www.shaolin.co.uk/ Here's a link to the correct page http://www.shaolin.co.uk/product.php/93/1//d64b9508edb6cf45e1d83c9b605da1f1"Authentic Yang style broadsword with a completely rigid blade made from the famous Longquan steel of China. Complete with scabbard, highly elaborate and very high quality polished Scented Pear wood and decorative metal work." Cost is £65, postage is free. They previously sold the lacquered ones too, but when they got their latest delivery and found they were floppy wushu ones they sent them back.

Davina and Paolo had previously bought sabres from Wushu Direct, who didn't seem interested in trying to get the correct sabre. However they have offered to provide a different sword as a replacement or a refund.

Yesterday Richard, David and I went to SENI (http://www.senishow.com/) as Richard had invited us to join him. It was certainly a fun few hours, but we all felt very lucky and happy with what we are studying. SENI is a huge 'fighting arts' event with everything from wrestling (men in little but tight purple knickers - fantastic!), Jeet Kune Do, Judo, Jiu Jitsu, to Capoiera via Wushu and even arm wrestling, bizarrely. The little T'ai Chi that I did see was done in a showy, competition-style Wushu-like way. We saw 'The Dance' but it was no more than a slow-motion step through with a great deal of angled ankle turning and bowing. Two things stood out: The Royal Marines display team had a large presence. From the efficacy of their real-life combat-based techniques to their non-showy attitude and openness with people, I have to say I was suprised and impressed. I also found a very good supplier of Jians and other swords. This company seem much more keen on quality control than is usual these days, especially as regards goods from China. I had to leave after a couple of hours: there's only so much grunting and posturing I can take. I left Richard and David watching a chap washing his face in broken glass and smashing roof tiles on his (female) student's thigh. Back at home I went into the garden to battle the long grass and brambles. I appear I have won this round.

88 move San Shou / The Dance - London Classes

My teacher Mark Raudva will begin teaching the Yang Style two person fighting set known as 'San Shou', '88 posture two person set', 'The Dance', 'the Dance of Vitality', etc shortly. This class will be open to my students as well as his students and to sincere T'ai Chi players from other schools. To enquire whether you have the correct experience and to find out more details such as cost, please go to http://www.thetaichicentre.co.uk/dance.html/ and email from there. The classes are likely to be for about 1 hour from 8.45pm on Thursday nights at Derinton Road Community Centre, Tooting, London starting on 29th May 2008.

Relatively few players teach or study The Dance, and what I have encountered has often been very rigid, staccato and blocky or highly gymnastic. The study of this wonderful interlocking partner form is a continuation of our lifetime's exploration of (to paraphrase from the 40 Yang Chapters in the T'ai chi Classics) meeting hardness with softness, yielding, sticking, adhering, connecting, joining, following... rather than an attempt to bully or control the partner or opponent, which innevitably leads one to disaster.
Mark learned The Dance from John Kells, who was taught by Gin Soon Chu.

The Dance is a joy to study with my teacher, and to practise both solo form or with a partner. In studying it during the last 8 months it has helped shed light on all other aspects of my T'ai Chi. Far from being 'another form to collect', the mindset of which is no use to anyone, the Dance shows me very staightforwardly when I am not yielding, in essence, when I am not practising T'ai Chi principles. When we are not practising principles, we may well be moving about very vigourously, but we are not practising T'ai Chi...

There is a great clip on the resources section of http://www.thetaichicentre.co.uk/ of Mark and his top student Duncan doing The Dance (with gentle intent, as it is Duncan's first ever run all the way through that got caught on film that night).

Lost Classics

I haven't posted for a week as I have been doing alot of T'ai Chi and when not at class I have been planting and planning in the garden or reading. Yesterday I finished a great book of the T'ai Chi classics which has much fairly recently-found great material from the Yang lineage. If you have spare pennies, buy this excellent book:
Lost T'ai-chi Classics from the Ch'ing Dynasty by Douglas Wile. It has a dreadful cover, which has always put me off... The 40 yang Family chapters are at the heart of what we practice. Thanks to Sam Masich for putting me on to this. I have my 'Essence of T'ai Chi' Ben Lo classics close at hand at all times, and I feel this book will have the same status as resource, guide and inspiration.

News from the northern reaches of the shire

• Tuesday morning short sessions for adults with learning disabilities are continuing at the Huntly Resource Centre for the next few weeks. We will then consider whether the classes will be a more permanent feature of the centre.
• Wednesday classes at the Tin Hut, Gartly (Tillathrowie road end) restart on 30th April from 7.30-9.00pm (beginners and returners).
• Thursday afternoon class continues at the Brander Library from 2.00-3.30pm as usual for beginners and returners.
• I will be running a taster session in Elgin in the near future for Moray Council employees. Thereafter, I would intend offering a lunchtime class for staff-either on a Tuesday or Wednesday.
• I have undertaken several workshops for adults with mental health, addiction and self esteem issues and am looking forward to doing more.

Thats all folks!

Sabre class this Saturday

There's a sabre practise session this Saturday 19th April 7-10pm at the Masonic Hall, Inverurie.

Sabres

If anyone is thinking of getting a sabre from Wushu Direct, hold off for a while. Two of my students are experiencing problems with the supplier. The wrong blades (floppy wushu ones) have been supplied, and they don't seem that interested in sourcing the right ones again. Watch this space.

St Mark's Mitcham China Day

Aberdeenshire Sunday classes in April

Sunday classes on April 13, 20, 27 April will be from 2:00 to 5:00pm (not 2:30-5:30, as previously stated) in the Wainman room, Kemnay Hall. Jasmine tea will be provided. Please enter by the side entrance to the Hall. Parking is also available at the rear of the hall - enter by Paradise Road.

All Great River students from the local classes are welcome to come along to any of these sessions regardless of your level of experience. We'll cover partnerwork and form, and these will also be great opportunities to practise and share what we learned with Mark at the weeklong workshop. Please contact me if you need any further information or directions to the hall.

T'ai Chi Weekend 16th-19th May

These are the proposed sessions with me in Aberdeenshire soon. I expect the sessions except sabre to be at Heather's and the 121s at Davina and Paolo's, but will confirm nearer the time.

Thursday 15th 7.30-9.30pm: Long Form £5/3 at the Masonic Hall in Inverurie
Saturday 16th 2-5pm: Partnerwork (Talu, push hands, uprooting, heartwork...) £10/6
Saturday 16th 7-10pm: Sabre at Kemnay Village Hall £10/6
Sunday 17th 2-6pm: 'Sunday class' open to all students at whatever level, bring questions and we will look at any Short and Long form as well as any partnerwork topics. £10/6
Sunday 7-8pm I will give an hour's introduction to T'ai Chi standing (zhan zhuang / standing pole / standing like a tree) and sitting (meditation) practice that will support and deepen our T'ai Chi practice, strenghthen the body, rooting and quieten the mind. Free of charge.

St Mark's School, Mitcham

I just recieved pictures from the afternoon of T'ai Chi I gave for the children of St Mark's School near me in south London. It was a fabulous day, I will post some more pictures when I have a mo to go through them. Two things I learned: 1. kids can really enjoy T'ai Chi and get something real out of it. 2. If you want to get the quiet, respectful attention of a group of children, demonstrate sabre form!

winning

The best way to beat your enemies is to outlive them.
Old Chinese saying

Autumn Weeklong Workshop with Mark Confirmed

Fetternear Hall is booked for Ta Lu on 10th October from 7pm and for the weeklong workshop 11th to 17th October, except Thursday 16th October when there is bowling at the venue! We have booked Monymusk Hall for that day.

This replaces the Summer weeklong, which will now be one of our regular weekend events, plus 3 or 4 days of 121s with Mark in Aberdeenshire, either at Heather's or Paolo and Davina's. Any students who would like 121s with Mark, please email or call me with possible times that suit you, I shall try to accommodate everyone. The times are:

Friday July 25th: 7-10pm - Ta Lu
Saturday 26th: pm and evening workshops (topic tbc)
Sunday 27th: pm and evening workshops (topic tbc)
Monday 28th - Wednesday 30th: 121 slots at 2-4pm, 5-7pm, 8-10pm.
Thursday 31st: 121 slots only if needed if all slots on 3 previous days are filled up.

We now have an extra weekend of T'ai Chi with Mark, in effect, which is great! All are welcome, please spread the word.

Wonderful

This was the best workshop yet...
Thanks with all my heart to Mark for his incredible teaching - it was truly humbling and inspiring all at once. Courage and disarming innocence from the newest students. A total joy to connect with Duncan again, my teacher's top student who has been away in NYC and is sorely missed by us all. Great to see so many London students come up and have such a brilliant time. I head back to London myself in a few hours, as I have a full day of T'ai Chi tomorrow too. I have lots of lovely pics, I just need a bit of time to collate them and then I'll post the best here.

For once I am lost for words.
Love and thanks to all who came and made this week so transforming.

Aberdeenshire Thursday class April and May

The Thursday Long Form class will be in Kemnay Hall Friendship Room on Thursday 10th April from 7:30-9:30 pm. Classes from 17th April to 29th May inclusive will be at the Masonic Hall, Inverurie.

Click here for details of Sunday drop-in classes open to all Great River students.

Aberdeenshire beginners classes

Beginners classes will restart after the Easter break. New beginners are always welcome. Please contact davina [at] greatrivertaichi [dot] co [dot] uk for more information.

Monday 14th April Turriff
Tuesday 15th April Alford
Wednesday 16th April Inverurie