From sixth grade through high school, I played the trumpet in my school band. I wasn’t a particularly skilled trumpeter (trumpetist?) but the experience gave me several valuable experiences: a love of classical music, an increased lung capacity, and an understanding of basic musical theory. I can still sight read music and can appreciate a talented musician’s performance a bit more than the average person. I haven’t touched my trumpet in years (or decades, yikes) but the experience has left an indelible mark on my life.
Now, what does this have to do with martial arts? The most visual representation of music in martial arts are in the sparring competitions. If you watch enough high level competition, you might notice that fighters bounce as they juke and jostle for positioning. Some seem to bounce lightly and softly, while others are more harsh and aggressive. Competitors can fall into a kind of rhythm and those who can control the rhythm have an advantage, as they then dictate the tempo and thus the timing of their attack. For my part, I can’t clap to a beat so finding music in sparring was not my strong suit.
Instead, I found my music in hyung (forms). As a color belt, I was more of an engineer than a musician, doing the moves exactly as they were dictated to me and never straying from what I was taught, even if it seemed rote. As I achieved my black belt and started to study my competitors during tournaments, I began to notice that every studio had a distinct rhythm from each other; it was to the point that I could recognize which studio a student was from just by watching their first two or three moves. As I went into my Sam Dan years and I had to adjust my hyung to certain physical difficulties, my rhythm changed as well, and I began to see different aspects from each hyung that I hadn’t noticed before. Techniques that used to flow together and glossed over now became separate bunkai (applications) from the hyung. I started to think less like an engineer and more like a musician, and since I received my Sah Dan rank I’m beginning to find (and appreciate) the music in martial arts more every day.
There was a phrase from a manga (Japanese comic) called Tenjho Tenge that still sticks with me to this day. It is 舞を制すれは武を制す (Bu wo Seisureba Bu wo Seisu), or ,”One who conquers dance (Bu) conquers martial prowess (Bu)”. Whether it’s in sparring, hyung or some other aspect of martial arts, think of where you can see the musicality in whatever art you perform. What is your rhythm? And how has it changed since you started practicing? It’s fun to think about how your own music has changed throughout the various stages of your training. Pay attention to your breathing, your heartbeat and all the various sounds and vibrations emanating from your body as you practice your martial arts. They are your body’s internal orchestra, and the more you stay in tune (pun intended) with your body’s rhythm the more you will find your martial music.
