Adam Hsu on Traditional Martial Arts

Discussion on the three big Chinese internals, Yiquan, Bajiquan, Piguazhang and other similar styles.

Adam Hsu on Traditional Martial Arts

Postby Bob on Thu Oct 16, 2008 5:25 am

America Top Ten Martial Arts Master, Wushu Master Adam Hsu, Injects Wushu Elements to Cloud Gate

By David Wang

World Journal, Sept. 9th, 2008
(Translated by Joan Huey-Dow)

(reprinted with permission by David Wang and the World Journal)


click to enlarge Sunnyvale, CA
The Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, led by Founder and Artistic Director Lin Whai-Min, toured many countries around the world performing their famous works Wild Cursive, Cursive, and Bamboo Dream. After the performances, the audience often would go back stage to ask: ''How do you achieve such unimaginable body movements?'' It is due to the fact that in the year 2000, Lin Whai-Min invited wushu master, Adam Hsu, to be the wushu teacher for Cloud Gate, to inject the traditional wushu nature into the bodies of the modern dancers for the unique and stunning beauty shown in the modern dance.

''Any achievements they have accomplished are result of their own hard work,'' says Adam Hsu who returned to the Bay Area from Taiwan during summer break and came to the Adam Hsu Kung Fu School class on Sunday. He says he just passes the basic concepts and techniques of traditional wushu to the dancers of Cloud Gate.

Adam Hsu studied wushu under many Chinese martial arts grandmasters, including Han Ching-Tan, Chiang Dong-Shen, Liu Yun-Chiao, Wei Xiao-Tang, Chao Lian-Fang, etc. Afterwards, he founded the Adam Hsu Kung Fu School in the Bay Area and had taught the classes for almost twenty years. He was elected as the ''American top-ten martial arts master'' by Kung-Fu Hall of Fame and Wushu Hall of Fame. Currently he teaches traditional wushu to the professional dancers of Cloud Gate. He is also the director of the wushu training program designed for youngsters of the general public. The wushu training class is taught at many of the Cloud Gate dance studios all over Taiwan.

''It is important to have proper concept while learning wushu,'' Adam Hsu says. He points out that the Chinese translation for the word ''sport'' as yun dong (運動) is not quite appropriate. ''If the movements require just the limbs, it should be called dong only.'' Adam Hsu uses karate and taekwondo as examples: ''It is considered satisfactory to use only the arm for a punch and the leg for a kick based on the standards of karate and taekwondo. But this is not acceptable by wushu standards.''

Adam Hsu explains: The word dong means the external movement of the body such as bending, jumping, crouching, kneeling, etc; while the word yun means the internal movement of the body such as breathing, circulation, or mind control, etc. ''The external dong and internal yun should go hand-in-hand together and cannot be separated. The wushu teaching passed down over the past several thousand years is the complete training of external and internal together.''

Adam Hsu suggests that it is better to start wushu training from childhood. ''Wushu trains not only ''uni-directional focus'' but the ''multi-dimensional awareness'' as well. The practitioner needs to expand his attention to all other parts of his body while focusing on his hand for a punch. ''When he punches or kicks, he extends his attention to the three-dimensional space surrounding him including front and back, up and down, left and right.''

Adam Hsu says that ''multi-dimensional awareness'' is the ability most needed by people in the modern world. ''The internal training for the brain, the mentality, and the mind will enable the kids to handle challenges in the future.''

Adam Hsu's (Taiwan) blog website is:
http://blog.sina.com.tw/kungfu_adam/.

http://www.adamhsu.com/articles/other_sifuvisit08.html
Bob
Great Old One
 
Posts: 3726
Joined: Tue May 13, 2008 4:28 am
Location: Akron, Ohio

Return to Xingyiquan - Baguazhang - Taijiquan

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 19 guests