Addressing its reputed character, we get the impression that every earnest instructor tries a different approach to proclaim Tai Chi as a martial art. Considering those instructors who do try and make the point feasible, the spectrum of possible arguments is endless. For instance, one common example has the instructor picking a bystander on whom […]
Jul
20
2018
20
2018
Jun
27
2018
27
2018
A Gathering Indeed
Friday, we drove south, over 350 miles to Monterey Park, in Los Angeles, in answer to Sifu Don Hamby’s invitation to attend his 3rd Annual Kung Fu Gathering of the Masters. Despite expectations based on decades of tournaments and events, we could not have anticipated what we encountered once the drumming started. Sifu Hamby, widely […]
Jun
10
2018
10
2018
More Living Treasures from China
Adding nine new DVD from the estimable China’s Living Treasures series. These include some excellent instruction on the Wu/Hao branches of Tai Chi, which is very rare in the west. Also included are instructional DVDs showing smooth and graceful performances by Yang style master Ye Xiao Long. George Xu returns with an advanced form of […]
Jun
10
2018
10
2018
Jun
10
2018
10
2018
Jun
10
2018
10
2018
Mar
27
2018
27
2018
Tutorial: Tai Chi Tips, Stepping
If you’ve spent more than 5 minutes at Plum, you know how highly we prize basics as the foundation of good movement. ‘Stepping’ in Tai Chi, is one of those fundamentals that you might learn on the first day of class, and which you might be refining well into your advanced practice. We prepared a […]
Mar
9
2018
9
2018
The Yi Bone’s Connected to the Qi Bone
Q: I started reading a book which examines the 5 major Tai Chi styles and uses quotes from the classics to show what they all have in common, and what is unique to each style. Anyway, lots of repetition of “yi leads the chi” and “chi leads the body”. I kind of always thought that, […]
Jan
25
2018
25
2018
Tony Yang & Bajiquan: A Repeat Appearance
Just a quick note to say we are now stocked, once again, on Sifu Tony Yang’s elusive 2 part DVD on Bajiquan. Yang Sifu studied Bajiquan in the Wutan tradition with Grandmaster Liu Yun Chiao, in Taiwan, and has been teaching this for many years. If you’ve been waiting, get them while they are here! […]
Jan
7
2018
7
2018
Gary Shapiro: Looking Back
In the past, I’ve written some articles for Plum detailing my Tai Chi adventures on cruise vacations. After nearly 40 years of work as a physical therapist, I decided that it was the right time to take a permanent vacation. On Aug 4, 2017, I made my last patient visit, went to the “big†office, […]
Nov
6
2017
6
2017
Oct
31
2017
31
2017
George Xu: Pioneer
Normally we reserve these weblog spots for a quick teaser, and designate the product pages for fuller reviews. However, since the works of George Xu often attract our special attention, we thought that this time, with his new DVD on Reeling Silk Energy, we would post our more in-depth interview along with our usual product […]
Jun
7
2017
7
2017
Liu Xiao Ling’s Presentation of Wu Tai Chi Sword
Pound for pound, Liu Xiao Ling is one of the most popular teachers on our site, especially considering the small number of DVDs he has produced from his wide range of styles and systems. The reasons are simple. His movements are accurate and simultaneously explicit. He contends himself with the “internal†arts such as Qigong, […]
Mar
19
2017
19
2017
Random Circles—The Synergy of Taiji Quan
by Jason Tsou and Art Schonfeld By necessity, there are many levels of martial arts training. A person must develop foundational work before he can go on to more advanced work. One essential training method often overlooked today is that of Random Circle training. While this is not the highest level of training, it provides […]
Sep
5
2016
5
2016
From Taiwan: An Old Frame and a Lost Track
There are a lot of well meaning martial practitioners out there that have probably never posed in front of a camera. They make honest, traditional and studied demonstrations of each particular style. Despite the special qualities of the style, the survey of their forms may be tepid and self-conscious. No disrespect to them, they did […]
Apr
4
2016
4
2016
Jan
22
2016
22
2016
The Basics
Jack Yan has emerged as one of our more favored writer/translators. His exhaustive series on the teacher Chen Zheng Lei has brought a lot of attention to this branch of the art, and his own series on Tong Bei is a welcome addition to what is otherwise a very under-represented field of texts and DVDs. […]
Jan
19
2016
19
2016
Restock: A few favorites return
We are always adding new titles to our Chinese book section, but every once in a while we are happy to see some old friends cycle back through. Our most recent shipments have landed limited quantities of those below (and more to come!) Bajiquan Illustrated: A gem of a book with photos of GM […]
Oct
20
2015
20
2015
Feng Zhi Qiang is Back!
As you look through our products and articles you might find that some items have a big WANT LIST announcement meaning we are currently out of stock. But we keep those lists up anyway just because of things like the two items on this page. Both are by the highly-recognized Tai Chi/Xing Yi/Qigong teacher Feng […]
Sep
7
2015
7
2015
George Xu on Power and such
Three more DVDs from the latest workshop with George Xu, who seems an almost endless source of new ways to invigorate your study while nudging you gently toward higher skills. In this case the intriguing thing is that we have three levels of practice and George Xu is able to distinguish their complexity and […]
