This is an exciting final week of the month at Academie Duello. I am getting ready to day for an event at the Vancouver Shakespeare festival, Bard on the Beach, for the launch of CC Humphreys latest novel Shakespeare's Rebel. We're doing a prize playing amongst senior Academie Duello students as well as choreographed fights…
Category: Adult Swordplay
Beginner's Courses: August Cycle
Whether you're looking for a fun way to get and stay in shape, or a new mentally and physically stimulating hobby, our Beginner's Courses have something for everyone. Take it from one of our Taste of the Renaissance graduates and now ongoing student: First off, if you are thinking about stopping in here, stop thinking…
Training Videos July 15: Rapier Stringere, Quinta & Sesta, Disarms & Strikes, Longsword Pressures
Welcome to Duello.TV for the week of July 15. Sorry that we missed our post from last week; sickness can strike even the most stout of us and I succumbed for a good part of the week. Now I'm back at it and we're into week 3. This week we're continuing our focus on single…
Post 30 for 30 Swordplay Training Challenges
Congratulations to everyone who made it all the way through the 30 for 30 Swordplay Challenge last month, whether you hit every day or missed a few! It's a pretty cool feat to up your training to any degree and set a new habit that reflects your goals. I hit every day and got a…
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Training Videos July 1: Lunging Mechanics & Measures, Rapier & Dagger, Disarms, Longsword Collection using Finestra
Happy Canada Day and Fourth of July to our friends in Canada and the US, respectively. We just finished marching our way through the streets of Vancouver with 65 of us showing off our swordplay skills for a very enthusiastic crowd. Let me tell you, this gives me no small respect for our historical brethren…
Training Videos June 17: Rapier Offhand, Sidesword Assalti III, Longsword Grappling and Collections
Hello everyone, and welcome to week 3 of Duello.TV. I just returned from the Borealis Swordplay Symposium in Ottawa, Canada yesterday. What a superb and fun event. If you were there, be sure to checkout the workshop review area for videos on winning the 5 crossings, as well as Sidesword cutting mechanics and core parrying…
Training Videos June 10: Rapier Offhand Invitations, Sidesword Assalti II, Exchanging the Thrust with Longsword, Collecting the Longsword with Posta Longa
Hello everyone to week 2 of June. The weather in Vancouver has continued to be beautiful outdoor training weather; in fact I climbed to the top of a local mountain yesterday to do my 30 for 30 Swordplay Challenge session. This week on Duello.TV we are featuring a lesson on collecting with longsword, our first…
Glossary of Academie Duello's Terms of Swordplay
Ours is a martial art rich with words. Words that describe foot positions, body orientations, sword positions, sword relationships and angles, directions of movement, tactical principles, strategic ideals, and more. We also use a vocabulary that is full of unfamiliar words from the Italian language (some of them even unfamiliar to modern Italian speakers) and…
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Training Videos June 3: Rapier Offhand Positions, Sidesword Mechanics, Collecting and Giocco Stretto with Longsword
Welcome to Duello.TV for the week of June 3rd. The sun in shining in Vancouver and its a great time to train outside. I know that many Academie Duello students are getting into some extra time at the sword as they participate in the 30 for 30 Swordplay Challenge. If you haven't joined, it's not…
Beginner's Courses: June Cycle
Are you... ...looking for a fun, engaging workout? ...in the market for an awesome new hobby? ...searching for a great social environment to support your goals? ...preparing for a Zombie Apocalypse? If you answered "Yes!" to any of these questions, look no further, Academie Duello's Beginner's Courses are for you! Both our Beginner’s Courses, Taste of the…
Training Videos: Mezzo & Contra Tempo Attacks, Countering Refused, Rapier & Baton, Mezzano Cuts and Tactics
Welcome to Duello.TV's videos for the week of May 27th! This week 'practice' has been on my mind. Capo Ferro says that swordplay is made up of Nature, Reason, Art, and Practice. Practice being the disciplining of the body to enact the principles of art, that have been identified through reason, and governed by the…
30 for 30 Swordplay Challenge!
It's common sense that if you want to get better at something, you need to practice. But practice takes time and commitment and setting a new habit can be challenging. That's where your friends can step in to help you. This June I am challenging you to join me and many others at Academie Duello…
Training Videos: Rapier recovering, Sidesword Covers, Longsword Precision
Happy Monday everyone. In Canada we're celebrating Victoria Day today -- seems like a good time to do some swordplay! This week at Duello and on Duello.TV we have a very interesting mix of classes. Green cords are working on getting out of situations where they have lost control of the sword. Blue cords are…
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A Cool New Addition to the Duello Library
This Monday, Academie Duello was the proud recipient of one of 100 new reproductions of the I.33 Fechtbuch produced by Extraordinary Editions in cooperation with the Royal Armouries of the United Kingdom. I.33 is a very important manuscript as it is the earliest surviving European sword fighting manual, most likely dating to sometime in the…
Training Videos May 6: Judging Measure, Rapier Refused Posture, Case of Swords, Longsword Precision
The sun is shining and I'm getting excited for a warm summer of swordplay. This week we are stepping into a new selection of topics. Green Cords will be working on techniques for receiving the opponent and inviting them into error, Blue Cords will be adopting the refused rapier posture, Red Cords are working on…
Duello.TV: Defeating the Offhand, Sidesword Parries, Breaking and Exchanging Longsword Thrusts
Welcome to bonus week on Duello.TV! What does this mean? Well our curriculum at Academie Duello works on a month by month 4 week rotation. This means that every few months there is a bonus 5th week. During this week we focus on integration and tactical exercises, applied combatives drills, and review. To fit this…
Advice for Having Swords and Bows in Public
A recent article in the Vancouver Sun has brought a often discussed issue to the forefront again: Can I carry a sword or bow to class on public transit, or for that matter down the street in Vancouver? The short answer is "yes" but there are some nuances to be aware of and a few…
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Training Videos Apr 22: Defenses Against the Cut, Sidesword Provocations IV, Longstaff Grapples
Greetings Duello.TV subscribers. We're wrapping up this month on Duello.TV and in classes at Academie Duello and is usually the case it is in this last week that we look at tying together all of the new skills that we've learned as we work to integrate drill into application. First level students are countering cuts,…