A quick review of Bram Frank's new book "Comceptual Modern Arnis"

I just complete a quick reading of Bram Frank's new book, "Conceptual Modern Arnis" and it's a beautiful thing to behold, all 500 pages of it. Bram Frank has taken a straight-ahead approach and pulls no punches in explaining how and why he has made the 'translations' and 'innovations' that he has to the art of Professor Remy Presas. This is Bram Frank's book all the way! He honors and recognizes the founder and grand master of the Modern Arnis, but he also steps out in a very bold and direct manner to claim his own place within the art as an innovator in what he refers to as the Black Sheep/Renegade mode of people. Among those cited
by Bram Frank are Tom Bolden, Hock Hockheim, Shishir Inocalla, Douglas Pierre, Richard Roy, Kelly Worden and Brian Zawlinski.

Throughout this book, Bram Frank pay attention to and recognizes the prominence of Professor Presas without resorting to elevating the founder/GM to demigod status or some other larger than life figure
whose feats are the things of legend. This book is about Modern Arnis
as Bram Frank sees it and that is more than enough to hold a reader's attention.

The whole Black Sheep/Renegade thing is an integral part of Modern Arnis and it is so deeply engrained in the fabric of the art that only a blind idolater would deny its existence. But alas there are a significant number of those folks within the Modern Arnis ranks. Bram Frank very smartly quotes Professor Presas, in his own publication: "Modern Arnis-Philippine Stick fighting Manila, Philippines 1974":

"Long ago, Arnis was a dying Filipino martial art…based on long experience in practice and teaching of the art, I have modified many antiquated techniques and introduced new ones… What came out is what I call “Modern Arnis” today. In my 27 years of research and practice of the art, I have concluded that it can compare in effectiveness with contemporary martial arts now sweeping the world in popularity…Its modernized presentation will help students understand the intricate styles and techniques."

Then Bram Frank goes on to write the following statement:

"Ok… Who does need tradition? Obviously those that seem to feel that by following a set path one can get to whatever place one needs to get too… Sounds too general? Ok…There are those that study Modern Arnis as the absolute gospel of ARNIS; whatever they have seen, studied or understood is EXACTLY how Modern Arnis really is. There can be no other interpretations of the way. This strict interpretation makes it a little hard for those of us who see Modern Arnis as a living entity."

In essence Professor Presas opened the door for and encouraged the development of a "Black Sheep/ Renegade" movement. From Bram Frank's research and conversations, he found that:

"When Professor Presas was just Remy Presas, a young man searching for knowledge…the way of the truth wasn’t even in the picture yet, he studied with ANYONE who would teach him. Over the years he came to see certain truths in each interpretation of Arnis, Kali or Eskrima. What most people who look at Modern Arnis or Presas Arnis gather at first glance is that Modern Arnis contains the names of many systems and styles and says it contains the way of these systems. Then one example is given to illustrate that system or way and Modern Arnis moves on. To the average person that’s akin to saying I know football…look this is the ball, you throw it, and standing there as if one truly understands football. Well actually if that was a conceptual statement it might actually be true, but westerners don’t think conceptually. Modern Arnis does."

It's obvious to those with good sight, even those whose vision has been corrected that the following statement by Bram Frank is also true:

"Remy Presas was a renegade in his homeland. He learned from many. He took what he saw as the basic truth and made it into a Filipino generic art. An art that would truly represent the Philippines and do honor to the whole class of fighting arts such as Kunai, Kali, Eskrima and Arnis…sort of the Tae Kwon Do of the Filipino martial art world. In doing this he set a way of learning that is still going on today. He’s still learning and Modern Arnis is still changing and evolving!"

Obviously that last sentence was written before 2001, while Professor was still alive and teaching his art. It is also equally obvious that Bram Frank believes that his book is following the the tradition that Professor Presas, himself, began with his founding of Modern Arnis. That is what makes the book so outstanding in my opinion. Modern Arnis in the hands of a Black Sheep/Renegade is a 'living' martial arts form that can be developed to fit each individual rather than forcing every individual to conform to some predetermed movements that both stifles and stuffs any original thinking or creativity. In a sense its too bad that Bram Frank placed this information at the back of the book in Chapter 24, but the fact that it is being used as a prelude to the final chapter which asks the question "Is Modern Arnis a Closed Family?", makes the transition to that chapter all the more important.

So many people assocaited with Modern Arnis in the USA, Canada and Europe tend to see Modern Arnis as strictly a stick based martial arts with some complimentry empty hand techniques. Bram frank states that:

"Renegade Modern Arnis Stick-fighting is about hitting the opponent. Nothing fancy, just hit the opponent. WHY? Because if you hit the
opponent then more than likely the opponent is NOT hitting you! This hitting action can be a flashlight, a cane, a stick, a hammer or a collapsing baton. I think you get the idea. Something longer than your hand and percussive!"

In other words Modern Arnis is a self defense fighting art with some alteration designed into it to make practice sessions safer for the participants; but at the central core of the art it all about fighting
for your own survival against another person. Then there is that other contention that separates this book from the others available on the art. It is the extension of Modern Arnis concepts to the blade such as the knife and bolo, which are featured in this book.

Bram Frank also wrote the following statement:

"Renegade Modern Arnis knife usage: steel seeks flesh and then cuts flesh! Using a blade would entail the same Conceptual motions. Ok… it’s almost the same usage as with empty hands…so let’s look at the same situation as presented originally with a percussive tool involved or with empty hand. The attacker comes at you with a wild swinging right handed strike. With your right hand you deflect / intercept the incoming attack by cutting into the arm with your knife’s edge."

There it is. The subject matter of this book and the very thing that a good number of Modern Arnis people outside of the Philippines want to avoid discussing. The blade concepts that exists within the art. A good number of people fall back to the position that 'Professor wanted to show 'the beauty of the art' as their rationale for avoiding any references to the blade aspects of the art within their instructional formats. They are justified to a degree because Professor Presas did say that presenting 'the beauty of the art' was important to him, but he also mention in his 1974 book on Modern Arnis that the stick was a training tool and it worked because it was less lethal than the blade. Therefore, it is not a matter of which side of the debate that one is on, because both sides have of the discussion have merit. It is really a matter of understanding that Modern Arnis concepts allow for and easily incorporate the blade. "Conceptual Modern Arnis" broadens the point of view regarding the utility and function of the art. The book gives the reader a great deal of information and factual data that encourages us to think outside of the box, look beyond a narrow set of restrictions and explore new options that exist but are not necessarily being taught by a majority of Modern Arnis instructors. This book encourages the reader to study the art in detail then find ways to "make the art for yourself" as the late founder stated quite often when he teaching his art, Modern Arnis, at the various seminars and camps around the world. I know that I heard him express that point of view at least once a day at every event that I attended from 1981 through 1994. Bram Frank has done just that and you will be better off reading this book from cover to cover, than ignoring
it for the sake of comfort and conformity.

beginnings are delicate times

"The proper teaching is recognized with ease. You can know it without fail because it awakens within you that sensations which tells you this is something you've always known." -Frank Herbert

Testing the site

Hello Folks, please post some simple statements to test the site for ease of use, to make sure that you get published and that comments from other authorized authors can comment on your posts.
Thanks.

Jerome

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