So, I was looking for videos on various Tantui sets and came across the following. I've tried searching for the DVD this is from, but the only retailer selling it is the one listed in the description, and they don't seem to be carrying it anymore.

Does anyone have a copy of this?

Or, of course, any comments?

YouTube - 12 Kicks of Shaolin Tam School Guide by Xing Yu KF615 coohk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Veu6t61VQMY)

http://stores.moviesville.com/Items/9310782

Other than that, I can't find anything else.

Friggin no English subtitles and all in Mandarin.

Sigh, no Canto...

The demo was a demo and then the partner training part was very impressive.

Is the Tam school well known for anything (perhaps, oh, kicks?) or popular in any particular region?

Hell, for 10 bucks, even without subtitles it could be good. Hmmm...

I've been unable to find out anything about it. I was looking for Tantui/Tamtoi, and that's what I got.

---------- Post added at 10:00 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:39 PM ----------


Kung Fu Hustle provides an inventory of its masters' talents—so that their skills can be authenticated. The coolie/ Xing Yu displays moves based on the Twelve Kicks from the Tam School . An important component of Northern Shaolin, Tam/Tan Tui—springy leg—highlights complicated footwork and expansive kicks. According to the popular understanding of the differences between Northern and Southern Shaolin kung fu, the Northern styles rely on long range techniques developed for fighting in the open plains of Northern China, while the Southern systems feature lower kicks, shorter range techniques, and more complex strikes and blocks suitable for fighting in marshy or hilly areas in the South. When martial arts became a competitive sport known simply as “wu shu” (“martial arts”) in the PRC, the springy leg Tan Tui form became one of the more popular sets for competitions.

http://www.hkcinemagic.com/en/page.asp?aid=135&page=6

Xing Yu is the same guy in the YouTube video.

Here's a couple different versions of Tantui.

Ching Wu:
YouTube - Tan Tui (æ½MonkeyScrotumCleaning.tvè…¿) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RE4Qt-w3YgY)

Northern Mantis Tantui, closer to what I learned:
YouTube - Tan Tui 彈腿 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huMEmA4giwU)

YouTube - Shaolin 12 Tan Toi 少林�二躺弹腿 by Lin Xian Rui 林宪瑞 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-WdX8VebqU)

---------- Post added at 10:14 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:00 PM ----------

Shaolin Tantui Trapping:

YouTube - Northern Shaolin's Tan Tui Trapping Hands (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUf-jSl98YU)

The demo was a demo and then the partner training part was very impressive.

Is the Tam school well known for anything (perhaps, oh, kicks?) or popular in any particular region?

Hell, for 10 bucks, even without subtitles it could be good. Hmmm...


AFAIK the original school is dead. Just Tantui and some drills are left. Folklore says this originally had 20 odd moves to match the characters of the Arabic alphabet.

I think all those crazy kicks are interesting, and really go to show that the oral transmission is more important than the set, since many of those kicks are at best implied in basic Tanui practice. Then again, there may be a Shaolin set that actually does all those kicks within the set, as opposed to using them as mnemonic placeholders.

I learned a Jingwu 12-road version. To me, the distinctive thing is really using the legs to bridge the gap (if you look at old full contact kung fu fights you see a *lot* of this -- junp or shuffle kicks to slam in) and techniques that use simultaneous hand and foot movement, usually to either throw or get a shot in while cutting across the diagonal. There's also the longfist idea of keeping the hands connected by folding into an elbow, changing the arm angle and so on, but I personally am less fond of that sort of thing than I was.