TaiJiquan
Level One Form & Applications

Joanna Zorya, instructor and head of the Reeling Silk Kung Fu School

Volume 1 $25.00 US
Volume 2 $25.00 US
Buy both volumes and receive a 10% discount! Only $45.00 for the pair

around 30 minutes each
mp4 format
Click on each picture for larger view

From the CD slipcase:

"Authentic Taijiquan (Supreme Polarity Boxing) is a study of soft and hard techniques, slow and fast tempo and importantly spiral movements and sudden explosive strikes. However, an alrming number of Taijiquan practitioners today, particularly in the West, have no notion of its crucial combative techniques. Instead, the art is seen simply as a form of gentle, low-impact exercise, or else as a purely meditative pursuit. I have spent almost a decade researching the fighting techniques of Taijiquan, Xingyiquan and Baguazhang and I require my students to deal with martially-realistic levels of contact from the outset of training. While many teacher just teach empty Forms, I focus on training students to be complete martial artists with strong, healthy and robust bodies, true martial morality, confidence and martial spirit.

This presentation demonstrates a great number of combat techniques for the first seven Forms
(or "Postures") of the Cheng ManChing Taiji style.
VCD One shows the first seven postures (Commencement to Single Whip) very slowly and step-by-step at the beginning. Then the form is broken down with many applications shown for each section. The content is very dense and detailed with slow motion repeats of each application. Reeling Silk is emphasized throughout.
VCD Two shows the major applications for the second section (Lift Hands to Embrace Tiger) and has a similar format to the first.

NOTE: This series is in mp4 format and only plays on appropriate machines. mp4 software can be downloaded for free from either Quicktime (free from http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/ (Click on stand alone installer if you haven't already got a Quicktime player. Otherwise you'll just get the update.) or Videolan Media Player free from (http://www.videolan.org/vlc/).

Shihfu Mancuso's comments:
I have just viewed Joanna Zorya's CD's on Tai Chi Applications.

A few comments: I have been in martial arts most of my life. What wows the crowds no longer lifts my eyebrow. What IS rare is not the flashy, powerful or sexy. What is rare is the accurate, simple and balanced. Was it Verlaine who criticized French verse by stating, "We have many poets who can write brilliant lines. But do we have any who can write three competent lines in a row?" In these disks Ms. Zorya guides us through the Cheng ManChing form of Tai Chi Chuan. She is an educated guide. She show us applications which are accurate, classical and interesting. You think that is common? Even Cheng himself was not so accommodating. We see many varieties of Tai Chi Applied but the movements are general Kung Fu with a lemon twist, supposedly making them Tai Chi. Zorya is very clearly breaking down her form move by move with classical but not obvious interpretations. What will you see here? The Lancashire countryside for one. Two women very simply and slowly showing dozens of applications derived from the Short Form. Zorya is so understated, so honestly pedagogical you may just miss the fact that the applications are good, clever and truly representative of their source.

You should know that she's given herself a task. It seems people in the U.K. are less than poignantly aware of Tai Chi's martial features. As a good instructor should, she approaches the issues of education clearly and directly. She is concerned that a hip injury will make her performance inaccurate in some way. So she notes the limitation. Would that some instructors warn about their attitudes so honestly. You will not see grunting, fake-speedy attacks or flashy moves here. What you will see is an intelligent and forthright person who wants to transmit, not impress. If there is a critical point we might make it is that we expect to see a deepening of Ms. Zorya's torso engagement as time passes. But look straight and you will see it already manifest. Given the stylistic requirements of the Short Form and her obvious dedication to developing skill, Ms. Zorya's program is already in place.

I think this series can be particularly useful to Tai Chi instructors and study groups.

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