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We can now confirm Shifu Liu’s three additional Saturday classes in between workshops, so there is a Saturday practice most weeks, the details are below. Classes start on the dates given, beginning on 12 October. Shifu Liu will continue teaching his Da Bei class at 9.00am on Sundays mornings at the Islington Chinese Association.

Shifu Liu’s NEW Saturday Classes at St Paul’s, Camden Square on:
12, 26 October, 
30 November and 
7 December

Saturday Class Times: 14:00 -17:00
14:00 -15:00 Shifu Liu’s Private Class: Da Bei Qi Gong* All levels
15:00 – 16:00 Chen Taiji Weapons – Chen Spear Form – Long form, level 3-4
16:00 -17:00 Chen Martial applications and strength training

These extra classes are interspersed between workshops.
Saturday Class Fees:
• Shifu Liu’s Da Bei Qi Gong: £10* cash only
• Term Three TJC Passes or drop-in fees can be used for payment for the other classes.

Any queries please email us. Thank you.

Tai Ji Circle welcomed this opportunity to meet Councillor Sabrina Francis, Deputy Mayor of Camden Council, and Mr Gong Songqi the Deputy Mayor of Jiaozuo city, and the rest of the officials from China who brought the 2019 China Jiaozuo Tai Chi Cultural Tour – The Thousand Miles on “The Belt & Road” to London.

We are immensely grateful to Councillor Francis for giving up her time on a bank holiday Saturday to join us and to all our students and friends who also came along to support us during their holidays. We would like to especially thank the TJC demonstration team who trained with Shifu Liu for their performances, photographers Matt, Raul and Lai for help with photographs, Michael for helping with introductions in Chinese.

Thanks to Ms. Zheng Xiaomin who provided us with English translations and presented unseen, the audio visual presentation up in the sound booth and Gary for taking care of microphones and video connections.

Shifu Liu Quanjun travelled with the 2019 China Jiaozuo Tai Chi Cultural Tour – The Thousand Miles on the “The Belt & Road”, to Edinburgh, Oxford, and finished in London with Tai Ji Circle. We are very happy to celebrate China’s cultural ‘gift’ of Taijiquan (Tai Chi Chuan), that is loved and shared worldwide, and help to promote exchange between British and Chinese peoples. 

The Chinese delegation were:
Mr. Gong Songqi, Deputy Mayor of Jiaozuo Municipal People’s Government
Mr. Li Jianyang, Deputy Secretary for Culture, Radio, Film and Tourism of Jiaozuo City
Ms. Li Meiling, Vice Governor of Wenxian People’s Government of Jiaozuo City
Mr. Li Xuhua, Deputy Director, Information Office, Jiaozuo City Government
Mr. Wang Haichang, Director of Wenxian Administration of Culture, Radio, Film and Tourism of Jiaozuo City
Ms. Zheng Xiaomin, Deputy Director, Chenjiagou Scenic Area Administration Bureau, Wenxian City, Jiaozuo City
Mr. Feng Zhijian, President of Jiaozuo Tourism Association and Chairman of Yuntai International Travel Agency of Henan Province.

NEWS FROM SHIFU CHEN BING

Tai Ji Circle are very sorry to announce that Master Chen Bing is unable to attend our event in London on 24 August and he sends his sincere apologies as he is unfortunately unable to enter the UK at this time. 

To enable the Jiaozui Tai Chi Cultural Tour to continue, Master Chen and the Jiaozuo government have invited Master Liu Quanjun of Tai Ji Circle to stand in for Master Chen Bing. Master Liu will now be part of the UK tour giving free workshops and demonstrations visiting Edinburgh and Oxford to celebrate China’s cultural ‘gift’ of Taijiquan (Tai Chi Chuan).

As planned, we are holding our free London event on 24 August 11:00 to 13:00 at the Performance Hall of Haverstock School, NW3, and we very much look forward to welcoming you and meeting the party from China and attending Master Liu’s free workshop and the demonstrations of Chen Taijiquan. 

It is disappointing news to miss this opportunity of meeting Master Chen Bing and we send him our very best wishes and hope that he will be able to come to the UK in the future. 

However it should be a great session with Shifu Liu and it is an honour for him to represent Chenjiagou and Chen Taijiquan, and for us all to come together to celebrate and enjoy the practice.

Eventbrite tickets for 24 August in London

Chris gave a talk about the benefits to health of taiji practice, at the AGM of the Kensington & Chelsea Forum for Older Residents, with whom she teaches a very popular weekly class in Notting Hill.

I asked my friends in the taiji class to give me some feedback on their experiences that i could read out at the AGM and they were really wonderful, here’s one example:-

“I love the tai chi classes, they give me energy & a sense of well being.  I think it is useful that you encourage us to do exercises at home, in fact you give us many tips.  Your patience is amazing, some of the seniors do not listen!” Sarah

Shifu Liu and Chris were invited to give a taiji/qi gong lesson by Central West London Healthwatch at their AGM at Kensington Town Hall on 15 July,

Tai Ji Circle’s Summer demonstration of Chen Taijiquan on 15 July, led by Shifu Liu Quanjun, showed the progression of many of the Chen routines we teach as part of our syllabus, from Foundation training, hand and weapon forms, such as Fan, Sword, Stick, Double Sabres. Shifu Liu expertly finished with a section of Xinjia Er Lu, one of the most advanced Chen routines full of jumps and energy releases. Enormous thanks to our team of students and friends who came from many parts of London and gave their time and energy to support and participate with us.

Shifu Liu gives free Chen taiji posture correction in the park today ?under a beautiful and ancient London Plane tree.

Please note that there are a few changes to the TJC class schedule from the end of May into June 2019.

Tai Ji Circle will be closed for classes on Sunday 26 and 27 May due to Shifu Liu’s 3-day Whitsun workshop. There will also be no free taiji in the park on 1 June. We have subsequently extended our Term to 18 August to make allowances for the break. 
This has affected the Foundation Course dates starting from 12 May, and we hope that this doesn’t cause you too much disruption if you have signed up for it. If you miss Foundation classes you are welcome to come along at any time to make them up through to 18 August.

FOUNDATION COURSE DATES CHANGE
Term Two Foundation Course Start Dates: 12 May • 23 June • 21 July 2019
Course starting 12 May, class dates will be as follows:
May, 12, 16, 19, 23. June 6, 9, 13, 16.

All Term Two Course dates

1)  12 May to 16 June
12, 16, 19, 23, May. 6, 9*, 13, 16 June (no classes 26 May due to 3 day workshop)
2)  23 June to 18 July
23, 27, 30 June; 4, 7, 11, 14, 18 July
3) 21 July to 15 August
21, 25, 28 July; 1, 4, 8, 11, 15 Augus

*SUNDAY 9 JUNE – VENUE & CLASS TIME CHANGE
Due to an all-day Pentecost services at the Islington Chinese Association on 9 June we are unable to hold our normal Sunday classes there. So that we do not lose any more classes this term, we have arranged classes in our other venue at St Paul’s in the afternoon after their morning service.

Class Times:
13:00 – 14:00 Chen Tai Ji: Beginners Foundation Course – All levels
14:00 – 15:00 Chen Tai Ji 1: 19 Part Form – All levels
15:00 – 16:00 Chen Tai Ji 2: Chen 38 Part Form 
16:00 – 17:00 Chen Tai Ji 4: Xinjia Yi Lu – Advanced
Venue: St Paul’s Church Hall, Camden Square, NW1 9BP

All other classes at all other times will run to the regular timetable and venues shown on the website. Apologies for all these changes. If you have any queries, please do get in touch with us by email.

Great session in Camden Square with Shifu Liu on Saturday, the sun emerged before a brief hail storm chased us into St Paul’s Hall, where we later had our Foundation Chen workshop, snug and dry!

Wonderful first day of workshops with Master Chen Ziqiang, lovely group of us studying, the practice and theories of Foundation training, huge thanks to Lai and Michael for some tricky and detailed translation. Below the important first steps of Chen training is the standing posture Zhan Zhaung, total concentration required on body position, placement and posture…