Taijiquan

Taiji Staff Applications (太極桿之應用, tàijí gǎn zhī yìngyòng) is a semi-cooperative exercise where you must demonstrate and explain 5 techniques of Taiji Staff.

Taiji Spear (太極槍, tàijí qiāng) builds off of the skills trained previously in Taiji Staff. This level consists of a Taiji Spear sequence.

This spear sequence was being compiled by Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming in 2011. Jonathan Chang was the “guinea pig” for learning it, to ensure it flowed and that the techniques included made sense. It incorporates techniques & concepts from Long Fist, White Crane, and Yang Taijiquan styles. Here is the shortened & more Shaolin version, cut down by Jon for demonstration & competition purposes. The original sequence is about 3x longer.

In Taiji Saber Matching (太極劍對練, tàijíjián duìliàn), students must create 5 short repeating routines with a partner that demonstrate offensive and defensive techniques based in correct Taiji saber theory. The techniques should be different than routines that students have created for previous levels.

In Taiji Sparring (太極自由散手, tàijí zìyóu sǎnshǒu), you must apply all Taijiquan principles into a sparring context. Students will integrate intercepting to create their initial entry into pushing hands applications.