Baby steps - Where I began my study of Chinese forms

 

When I was in my first year as a Sho Dan in Isshinryu I began my study in Yang Long Fist T’ai Chi Chaun with Ernest Rothrock. I was starting to visit many schools of competitors I met at karate tournaments and training with them too.

But I had been interested in T’ai Chi since an independent study I made in college on Taoism and this was my first chance to learn this.

After 9 months training with Rothrock Laoshi, I had another idea. Often at those tournaments I would be called on to judge Chinese stylists, and I was realing I did not really know what I was being asked to judge. One day before my class I approached Laoshi and asked him if it would be reasonable to learn some Chinese forms so I could become more knowledgeable on how Chinese systems work.

 

He thought about it and then agreed. He then turned to a list behind his desk and asked me what form I wanted to study. As the list had hundreds of forms listed on it, I responded I have no idea. (The list was of the forms he was working on at that time.)

So he asked me again which form did I want to study. Again I responded I had no idea which form would be a good place to start. Then I asked him why not choose a form for me.

 

Then he looked at the list and finally picked one. “I am going to suggest you study Dune De Kuen a Northern Shaoin form. Roughly equivalent to what might be a beginning black belt form in that system.

 

I agreed having no idea what I was getting into. I had not studied the basics of that system. But class after class I worked on getting that form. About a year later I finished.

 

Roll forward another year, and other form studies later, I told him I was going to attempt competing with that form as a tournament in Baltimore that had separate Chinese divisions. When he heard that, then began much more focused work on the small details of that form.

 

Later he and I drove down to Baltimore, Both of us were going to compete in separate divisions. He in a Chinese masters lever division. Me in the Chinese black belt forms division and me in a karate black belt forms division.

 

In my Chinese forms division I successfully completed my form, and my scored were about in the middle of the pack. I did what I wanted to do, deliver a credible performance.

 

Again move forward to the December 1984 when I would be moving to New Hampshire for work, Dave Belsky, who then ran the Wilkes Barre Pa school, volunteered to tape the forms I had learned so I might remember them. For I had studied about 20 Chinese forms. Again not to be an expert but to gain knowledge of Chinese systems. I had studied from Northern Shaolin, Northern Praying Mantis, Northern Eagle Claw, Pai Lum and forms used by the Chin Wu Association. Hardly was I an expert, but I enjoyed the work they represented.

This is my performance of the first of those forms, Northern Shaolin Dune De Kuen

 

 

Subsequently You Tube came around and I have found Chinese performances of the same form, abet with small differences as any system has.