Does anyone have the Plum Publications 'A Tour of the Tai Chi World' video?

[Braden]

I'm hoping someone can identify one of the forms and/or practitioners in it for me. It is the segment just following the 'issuing force in push hands' segment that is labelled Wu Shi Taijiquan (the narration specifies Wu as in Wu/Hao). The form is done by a man in black pants and a brownish-red shortsleeve button-down shirt; it contains a variety of twisting and leaning movements of the spine. The narration indicates it is a Wu/Hao form, but it looks radically different to the 49/96 Hao forms demoed by Liu Jishun. Could it perhaps be what he calls the 81 Forms, or a practitioner from a different branch descended from Wu Yuxiang? Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Brad]

The leaning sounds like the other Wu style. Unless I'm getting the two confused.

[looking_up]

Would you recommend that tape?

Thanks,
LU

[RAF]

Braden:

I have both the Chinese version and Ted Mancuso's translated verision. However, I lent my English version out. Why don't you write to Ted. If he is around, I am sure he will answer.

In the Tao of Taijiquan, Jou Tsung Hwa, there is an illustration of the entire Wu/hao form. One fo the China's Living Treasures series shows the exact form of the book being performed. (its the series on taijiquan).

Jou's theory was that taiji should go from form to formless (appearance) because all the principles become internalized.

Thus you advance from the Chen to the Yang's to the Wu/hao and based on my viewing of the form, the Wu/hao demonstrated on the Living Treasures tape does show a minimum of external movements. Quite frankly it baffles me and I cannot see how it was related to Chen's and barely see its relationship to Yang style and have now idea how the applications and training work.

There is a guy down in Texas, the one who hold the Taiji Legacy tournament who does the form and I saw him play it on a Lily Lau Tournament Tape(??) and it looks much better than the Living Treasure performance. He has a website and a tapes with the teaching of the first 20 or so movements. The other guy Jian ???? who sells all of the tapes has the form on tape too but I have never seen it.