Powerful Chen Taiji Perf

[Andy_S]

Some powerful - and clearly performed - Chen Taijiquan in NYC's Central Park. Anyone know this chap? Looking at his movement, I would guess he is a Chen Yu alumnus.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKp_HH2a ... re=related

[kreese]

I hate to say it, but it looks like he is using a similar choreography as Chen Yu, but with a different body method, in particular the horse stance. This is no comment on the man's skill level, just an observation.

Watch this person, a disciple of Chen Yu:


His knees don't oscillate nearly as much as the gentleman in Andy's post. This is one of the aspects of Chen Yu's taiji that I could never quite figure out, but it appears to be a distinct aspect of their shen fa regardless of the personal flavor of the player. There are other subtle differences that are hard to put into words, such as the way he jumps and the way the parts of his body relate to each other, weight shifting, range of motion in fa jin movements, but again I am far from being in any position other than to point out some differences based on having trained a little Chen style and having compared and contrasted with Chen Yu's style. No judgement. But there are certain things that appear to remain consistent among those that study Chen Yu's taiji.

Other examples:

[dtactics]

Some powerful - and clearly performed - Chen Taijiquan in NYC's Central Park. Anyone know this chap? Looking at his movement, I would guess he is a Chen Yu alumnus.

Indeed. That was beautiful. He moves better than a 15 year old.

[Adam S]

couldn't find much info on him but did find this

"Master Yu is originally from China and has studied with three of the four tigers, Chen Yu, Chen Xiao Wang and Chen Zheng Lei. He teaches forms, push hands and real martial applications and weapons. Master Yu also teaches the old and new forms."

Obviously CY isn't one of the 'tigers'- but that explains the difference between the choreography & body method

very similar to how I'm taught........so I like it

[GrahamB]

Some powerful - and clearly performed - Chen Taijiquan in NYC's Central Park. Anyone know this chap? Looking at his movement, I would guess he is a Chen Yu alumnus.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKp_HH2a ... re=related

Thanks Andy!

I can rarely stomach watching people do Chen Tai Chi forms, especially in silk pajamas, but this guy was great - really held my attention. Clear moves with obvious purpose and great expression of power. Loved it. Thanks.

[middleway]

I can rarely stomach watching people do Chen Tai Chi forms, especially in silk pajamas, but this guy was great - really held my attention. Clear moves with obvious purpose and great expression of power. Loved it. Thanks.

This is a rare occasion indeed!! me and the G man actually agree on something!!

Thanks for posting this Andy!

Cheers
Chris

[GrahamB]

I can rarely stomach watching people do Chen Tai Chi forms, especially in silk pajamas, but this guy was great - really held my attention. Clear moves with obvious purpose and great expression of power. Loved it. Thanks.

This is a rare occasion indeed!! me and the G man actually agree on something!!

Thanks for posting this Andy!

Cheers
Chris

Yes, we agree, but you have only a low-level understanding

[middleway]

Yes, we agree, but you have only a low-level understanding

i know

[mrtoes]

Very impressive, really enjoyed that! Particularly deep stance, is Chen usually done like that? Looked a bit ow on the knees in places, but if he can still move like that then it's clearly not a problem

[enricos]

Hi folks,

New here but long time into martial arts.

I met Master Yu by chance in Aug. 2009. He is willing to share his knowledge, the only problem for me is I live close to Chicago.

Enricos

[cdobe]

No big difference to the Jesse Tsao apps IMO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WPMWutnSdc

[Adam S]

Particularly deep stance, is Chen usually done like that?

As a general rule 'xinjia' is done this way

[Andy_S]

I'd say he has an excellent stance:
His feet are pointing in the same direction throughout
His knees barely move
He is very low, but sits back into it and keeps his back straight (ie he is not relieving the weight by leaning forward)

Do Chen people usually have such a deep stance? Clearly, no: This guy is exceptional. All in all, he has excellent technique, IMHO.

Personally, I have never heard that xinjia is customarily performed lower than laojia or xiaojia: IME, it is all personal preference, (though Ma Hong's group do tend to have very low stances).

As for the apps - well, yeah.

As noted in a post on Segs' "Hrrrrmmmm" thread, form "applications" are not the way fighting is generally taught in Chen Taiji in the village: The format for that is the shuai PH. Oddly, in the west, hardly anyone does the latter, so a hell of a lot of people teach the former.

[ChiBelly]

His knees don't oscillate nearly as much as the gentleman in Andy's post. This is one of the aspects of Chen Yu's taiji that I could never quite figure out, but it appears to be a distinct aspect of their shen fa regardless of the personal flavor of the player. There are other subtle differences that are hard to put into words, such as the way he jumps and the way the parts of his body relate to each other, weight shifting, range of motion in fa jin movements, but again I am far from being in any position other than to point out some differences based on having trained a little Chen style and having compared and contrasted with Chen Yu's style. No judgement. But there are certain things that appear to remain consistent among those that study Chen Yu's taiji.

Those are keen observations, especially regarding the knees. To me, the frame looks most like Chen Zhenglei's lineage, with a hybrid of other influences. I can use the Yilu video for a couple examples (since the movements are slower):



- Example at :11

- In Chen Yu's method, the knees are not allowed to go so far past the foot, even when trying to go low. When you are sinking, the effect of this is that the shin stays more vertical and the thighs take on more of the weight burden.
- Notice also that the front foot is not flat on the ground. This is partially a consequence of the angle of the shin and knee location. It does not actually touch the ground until he shifts his weight forward at :15, when the shin becomes vertical.
- In Chen Yu's method, the torso would remain more vertical, even when going low. It's a different issue to keep your torso vertical when you are holding a horse versus when you are in transition.

:20-:26

- In Chen Yu's method, the knees would not swim or collapse inward (dantian does the swimming instead). At most, the kua would open and close in a tight fashion, and any movement of the knees would be a consequence of that.

I really enjoyed watching his video and think he moves uncannily like a younger person.

[Methods]

Yeh - me like this allot...