Simon,
I tried to look into the WSJ angle in the past in realtion to a hybrid form (that might or might not be similar to what you were exposed to). The hybrid I once learnt was based upon the CPL Orthodox form, which ultimately led me to it - and I wouldn't be the only one. It turns out that might be connected to another teacher, but that's all by the by.... But it's not beyond the pale that this teacher was also teaching CPL materials in that part of the world - and who knows in what form and manner. Anyway.. I learnt that hybrid in the UK and concluded that that wasn't what WSJ was doing or teaching from what I could tell, he was teaching Orthodox CPL taiji seperately to xingyi, seperately to bagua. If you've combined everything so to speak into one thing, why bother teaching three distinct styles seprately as well. It doesn't really make sense to make a hodge podge of one of them (taiji) and leave the other two as stand alone. Not to me anyway.
If you want to explore CPL taiji, one of the best thing you might do is try to pick up CPL's taiji textbook. There's a lot of good information, and it's one of the better practice manuals I've seen. I recall getting mine from Rochester tai chi who at the time also sold a tape of a Chinese man performing the set. Sorry but I can't recall his name. Sadly being VHS I now no longer have it.
Taiji Quan from Wu Jian-Quan, Yang Shao-Hou, Ji Zu-Xiu and Xu Yu-Sheng. He also spent a year (from 1927 to 1928) in the village of Chen Jia Guo to research Chen's Taiji Quan.
The modern classic of Chen Pan Ling Taiji Quan emerged after Chen Pan-Ling chaired a government committee of renowned martial artists of the 1940's. The resultant form, supported by scientific theory, incorporates the best from the Taiji Quan styles popular, in China, at that time. Chen Pan-Ling was an advocate of the approach to standardisation and systematic teaching so that Taiji. In his efforts to develop a synthesised form Chen Pan-Ling was conscious to combine applications that told a story, were effective and properly representative of the three schools of Taiji of which the synthesised form is comprised. The result was a form which captured the undeniable martial arts nature within the most beautiful movements.
The Yang and Wu styles are the most obvious in terms of incorporation and contribution to the development of the Chen Pan-Ling form. There has been some debate on the significance of the influence that Chen Taiji Quan had on the development of Chen Pan-Ling's form. Chen Pan-Ling studied at Chen Jia Guo and assisted with the publication of Chen Xin's book on Chen Taiji Quan, so his knowledge and understanding of Chen Taiji Quan is indisputable. As to Chen Taiji Quan's influence on the Chen Pan Ling form: the most obvious evidence is within the form itself and the degree of spiraling rotation on the vertical axis - silk reeling energy.
http://www.kuoshu.co.uk/Chen%20Pan%20Ling.htmlRegards the ward off, I can't say I've related to anything other than ward off. That could be my lack of imagination though
But! it may be a bit closer to Wu than Yang - and their ward off is quite different indeed (comparing to YCF). The CPL version you could argue is somewhere in between. Maybe. It's hard for me now after 15 years and having done all three at one time or other. I just do ward offs lol
Wayne,
At the best of times Yang style and Wu style is practically the same thing in terms of content, "under the bonnet" - of course the style of doing them is somewhat different, but it's more the same thing than not when it comes to the majority of postures and movements - well all tai chi is like that in my experience, underneath the stylistic aspects we're dealing with the same blueprint. One obvious difference is that the first repulse monkey is of the twist step variety - like Wu style and unlike Yang style. White Crane is different to Yang style being done in the Wu style way of doing it rather than Yangs posture. To name a couple off the top of my head. If there's anymore I would have to review .. I also have modified my own form over the years mixing things in and out from the tai chi I have picked up. I think I've probably put in the Wu style of doing rooster on one leg for example.