Calasanz is a Master Martial Artist who has spent a lifetime studying and teaching Karate, Kung Fu, and Kickboxing. To create his unique Physical Arts Training Program, Calasanz has combined not only his Martial Arts mastery, but his extensive training in dance, gymnastics, weight and fitness counseling. His unique system is based on ancient wisdom and modern sports medicine’s understanding of the body’s needs and capabilities. The Calasanz System has the capacity to help you create the body you’ve always dreamed of possessing, as it trains your mind and spirit to excel.
Calasanz has, for twenty-eight years, trained young and old, professional athletes and dancers, law enforcement officers, and a host of individuals from all walks of life, in a way that leads to fitness, focus, health, strength, confidence and longevity. He calls his System Calasanz Physical Arts.
Renowned as a hero in his native Dominican Republic, and star of the movie Crossing the Line, Calasanz firmly believes we all have the power to transform our lives, if we’re willing to commit ourselves to the process.
“My system,” Calasanz explains, “has the unique ability to allow anyone, of any age, who has the determination and the desire, to become a martial artist and to transform his or her life.”
Imagine a complete circle represents all there is to know and master in the martial arts. The circle pictured represents all that Calasanz knows and has studied in the martial arts. Notice the space at the top; this space represents what he does not know. There is always room for improvement and new things to learn. Therefore, the circle will get closer and closer, but never become complete. The quest to become such a well-balanced martial artist for Calasanz is multi-faceted and has been a result of environmental factors and natural innate abilities.
The act of doing martial arts requires a high degree of athleticism and a knack for performing in front of people. Calasanz was blessed with both from day 1. Whether he was up first thing in the morning at a young age doing grueling farm work, honing his god-given strength, endurance, and athletic prowess; or singing and dancing for all the people in town by night; it was all the foundation for his life’s work.
Street fighting also prepared him, before he even took a martial arts lesson. Growing up in a 3rd world country like the Dominican Republic, he had no choice but to defend himself, friends, and family against bullies and thugs. After he started martial arts at 15 the fighting didn’t end. He would go to different dojo’s to challenge the best students and would attempt to take on hordes of people with just his nunchucks!
Even when he started martial arts it came very easy to him, he had everything in him he needed athletically, intellectually, and experientially to become one of the world’s most well balanced martial artists. But there are many people, who, in there particular athletic or intellectual line of work who have this potential, but most fail due to lack of drive and poor work ethic to develop their gifts beyond anyone else, but not Calasanz, for the next 30 years of his life, and even up to today he would spend hours training, studying, and teaching martial arts. This is how he has come so close to completing the circle, natural talent and a relentless drive.
Part 2 – The Calasanz System
One can only imagine the information, opinions, and theory’s one man has after hours and hours of study day after day, for years. From his experience and ability, Calasanz was able to take the most useful techniques and attributes from all the martial arts he studied, and combine them together into a unified system, he called this The Calasanz System. This is much like what Bruce Lee did in the 60’s and 70’s, and what MMA does today. The main difference though between Bruce Lee, today’s MMA, and Calasanz, is that Calasanz did not completely discard all the material he thought “useless” as the others have. He understands that he would not have completely understood their “uselessness” had he not tried them, and future students would not be as wholesome as him if they did not get a chance to experiment with the “uselessness”. So in his eyes, these particular techniques and attributes actually do have a use; they have the ability to make the student a more wholesome, well-rounded martial artist.
So there is, in a sense 2 parts of The Calasanz system 1) The combined, blended, unified system of karate, wing chun, boxing, kickboxing, ground fighting, and physical arts consisting of only the techniques and attributes that work. 2) The complete versions of all the arts that make up The Calasanz System, other martial arts, and supplementary exercise systems. Part 2 focuses on The Calasanz System.
The Calasanz System is a system of martial arts techniques and exercises that prepare the body and the person to defend themselves against violence, whether controlled (combat sports) or uncontrolled (abusive attack, self defense, street fight). The system has a track record of teaching beginners a number of techniques that they can use immediately to protect themselves and help them understand the dynamics of a violent acts (controlled or uncontrolled) faster then most martial art in the world.
The system also includes a set of holistic exercises called physical arts that build strength, endurance, flexibility, coordination, balance, body unity, and proper alignment. Many of the physical art exercises are also functional; meaning that a technique is being learned at the same time the person is conditioning his/her body.
Simplicity, power, centerline, interplay of hard and soft, simple blocks, counterstrikes, reactions, bone conditioning, head movement, and physical arts.
Part 3 – Complete Art Systems and other Martial Arts within The Calasanz System
Imagine a circle inside a bigger circle. The inner circle represents the Calasanz System the outer circle is one we’ve spoke of before representing all techniques and knowledge in the martial arts and all exercises systems.
There are parts of the outer circle that exist within the inner circle. And the outer circle contains the arts that Calasanz has mastered: Goju-Ryu Karate and Wing Chun Kung Fu; the arts that he has studied to at least brown belt: aikido, judo, jujitsu, chen chuan long fist; arts that he has studied such as dance, ballet, jazz, and ballroom; combat sports he has competed in and/or trained others in: boxing, kickboxing, MMA, full contact karate, and point fighting; exercise systems he has trained in and taught: aerobics, isometrics, weight lifting, and calisthenics; and all other martial arts and exercise systems he has not trained in and taught, but can see inside of (more on this in Part 4) such as: ninjitsu, yoga, Pilates, tae kwon do, krav maga, northern and southern kung fu’s.
American boxing, American kickboxing, MMA, full Goju, Wing Chun, and Kung Fu forms. Combine the Calasanz System with anything you want, while Calasanz may not agree with your choices he is not the type of teacher to abolish your actions or step in the way of your path, rather he walks on the side and just makes suggestions but lets you chose your own path.
Part 4 – Calasanz
In part 3 it was mentioned that Calasanz could look “inside” martial arts that he has not even studied. This is not as far fetched or egotistical as it might seem with some proper explanation.
Einstein’s Unified equation, thirst for knowledge and natural ability (vertical leap), broken down to the most basic, general rhythms and movements of the body, allows him to see inside technique and body attributes so like a doctor prescribes medicine, Calasanz can prescribe certain techniques to develop, exercises to do, and critiques on performance to enhance any type of martial arts or exercise techniques.
With all due respect Mr.Calasanz. I find your boasts of having to defend some random and esoteric “internal arts master’s school from trespassers looking to start trouble” and that “it was Calasanz that had to do the fighting. The internal artists retreated in the background.” a bit sensational and outlandish. Much like your biographical passage…
“One day on the farm, Calasanz was ordered to milk the nastiest cow. She did not want to be milked that day, so she kicked him in the stomach. Calasanz’s reflexes caused him to automatically kick her back and to his surprise, he knocked the cow out cold..”
Lets be honest here, your martial arts lineage is spotty at best yet you claim to have been learned by this and that master of this and that style yet you only mention “Tamajoshi” Sakamoto by name, and even THEN its mis-spelled, I’ve trained under two great masters, Tadashi Yamashita & Ma Jin Long for over 24 years! I would never mis-spell there names. Meanwhile these other so called “masters” you claim to have learned from/ defended are just mere mentions in some grand self righteous egocentric story about what an amazing martial artist you are.
In my professional opinion Mr.Calasanz, your ego overshadows your grip on reality. While you ARE physically fit, very flexible, and a great performance artist. You surely not a martial arts master of any kind.
Sincerely,
Sensei Tony Perez
Reponse:
We appreciate your comments but would like an opportunity to respond. Regarding the scene in the internal martial arts school, Calasanz was there, you were not. The account is true and is told for the purposes of illustrating to students the importance of balancing hard and soft approaches to martial arts training.
In 1987, Wing Chun instructor Phillip Holder came to Connecticut and began attacking Calasanz Wing Chun credentials much like you are right now. Calasanz brought his Wing Chun master, Moyat to his dojo, proved that he had been his private student and put this issue to rest.
Calasanz doesn’t need a “grip on reality” as you so put it. He has real credentials, a real successful martial arts business, and real students who see the value in his training philosophy. What he has done differently is to go outside of the traditional arts and incorporate innovative ideas that tend to ruffle the feathers of more conservative martial artists. His approach and those like him in the martial arts world always attract critics.
This is a man who has spent over 30 years in the martial arts, working night and day on his craft. He may need to check his spelling once in a while; that we will admit. However, make no mistake about his credentials and commitment to his students and his community. We are glad that you are proud of your spelling abilities and that you have never misspelled your teachers’ names. We will take that criticism under advisement and admonish our editors to be more careful next time. As far as your other comments are concerned, we have been dealing with naysayers for a long time and will long after you are out of the picture. At the end of the day, Calasanz and his system still stand strong and so do his credentials.
Eight years had passed since Calasanz came to the U.S. to make his movie and it seemed that that time was slipping away. His students goaded him constantly, asking him, “Hey Calasanz, when will we ever see this film?” Even though the time and circumstances were not ideal, Calasanz felt compelled to act and realize his dream.
One of Calasanz private students, an aspiring filmmaker who we’ll call Mike, wanted to help Calasanz with the film. So the team started by making a few commercials and eventually turned its attention to producing an independent film.
One of the first things they needed was a good script. Calasanz had been developing his version of the perfect script for over 10 years, but needed his ideas to be formalized by a professional. Another student who was a Hollywood scriptwriter gave Calasanz some good ideas, but it needed more work. Mike agreed to get the script in working order. This would require many revisions and Calasanz was assured that it would be ready.
Sounds good up until this point, but many obstacles got in the way. Calasanz suffered a shin injury in a bizarre situation that hampered his ability to train as well as keep his business afloat. (See:http://blog.calasanz.com/2009/05/27/how-one-out-of-control-cook-changed-my-life/) On the day that production was supposed to start, the script was nowhere near completion. Frustrated, Calasanz took his original script out of the director’s hands and from that point on; the movie became an improvised production.
Financial problems also plagued the movie. The first version of the film was not up to Calasanz standards and the only way to improve it was to invest more money into its production. While many involved in the making of the movie were well intentioned, inexperience proved to be very costly.
The price tag quickly escalated from a budget of $350,000 to almost a million dollars. Calasanz did whatever he could to raise the funds to make the movie, including borrowing from friends and students. When the movie did not produce the financial rewards expected, Calasanz was left with a pile of debt. Advised by many to discharge these debts in bankruptcy, Calasanz refused, and made it his mission to pay back all his investors with cash, memberships, or a combination of both.
In the eyes of the world, Calasanz may have failed because his movie wasn’t a blockbuster. In fact, Calasanz doesn’t look at it this way. The making of the movie had many successes beyond what you see on the screen. Calasanz was a pioneer in making movies in the State of Connecticut. Now in 2009, Connecticut is one of the premiere locations in the country for moviemakers. Calasanz made his vision come true in the 80’s and saw the potential for creative works in this state. Calasanz also used the making of the movie and the publicity surrounding it to promote his name, which has proved to be invaluable as far as promoting the goodwill of his martial arts business. He also learned there were many people who believed in him. That’s why it was so important for Calasanz not to file for bankruptcy.
Not many people out there can say that they actually made their own movie and paid for it. The movie played in theaters on the East Coast and also in the Dominican Republic, where Calasanz is a national hero. In the end, Crossing the Line was a great success. It all really depends on how you measure it.
Walk into Calasanz dojo or visit his website and you can’t help but notice the posters for his movie, Crossing the Line. Most students and visitors can’t resist picking up a copy of a movie that was made right here in Fairfield County. In the film, Calasanz stars as Jose Fernandez, a hard-hitting kick boxer and martial arts instructor. Jose rises to stardom after winning the world championship. His popularity attracts the attention of Jimmy Scarfone, a local hoodlum and owner of sleazy strip clubs, who becomes obsessed with the fighter’s new celebrity status, and begins to stalk him. Jose’s every move becomes the subject of Scarfone’s Americas Most Violent Videos. Soon Scarfone finds the ordinary life of a fighter is not exciting enough and sets about to change that. A series of violent encounters, lead to the eventual kidnapping of the champion.
What you may not know about the film is what led up to its making and why it was so important for Calasanz to put his neck on the line to produce an independent movie.
Calasanz was born in the Dominican Republic and like most boys his age, enjoyed action movies. In 1975, his father took him to see Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon and he was hooked. His mission in life from that day forward was to come to America, make a movie and become as famous as his matinee movie idol. While his father wanted him to become a competitive boxer, Calasanz wanted something more than jumping into a ring and beating up on his opponent. There was a spiritual aspect to the martial arts that drew him to it. From that point on, he did everything he could do to make his dream come true. Calasanz went to the city to pursue his academic studies and quickly found a traditional martial arts school. He trained long, hard hours, studied and worked at a bank to support himself. All along, he kept his goal in sight. As a valued employee, the bank wanted to invest in his future, so they agreed to send him to the United States on a student visa to study English as a second language. Once he set foot on U.S. soil, Calasanz never cracked open a book, but instead jumped head first into the martial arts.
Calasanz made his desire to make a movie well known to anyone who was willing to listen. All his students and colleagues knew that his sole purpose for coming to America was to make an independent martial arts movie without having to deal with the politics of the mainstream movie industry. He’d heard about how Bruce Lee had to actually leave the United States and make movies in Hong Kong because the industry had a hard time respecting a foreign actor. But in order to do get this movie made, Calasanz needed money and time, two things that are in short supply for a martial arts teacher busy building a business from the bottom up.
Calasanz’ extended biography. Detailed events of his life, and the interesting perspectives and philosophies that helped to evolve one of the most innovative and effective martial arts systems in the past several decades.
In the movie Crossing The Line, Calasanz stars as Jose Fernandez, a hard hitting kickboxer and martial arts instructor. Jose rises to stardom after winning the world championship. His popularity attracts the attention of Jimmy Scarfone, a local hoodlum and owner of sleazy strip clubs, who becomes obsessed with the fighter’s new celebrity status, and begins to stalk him. Jose’s every move becomes the subject of Scarfone’s Americas Most Violent Videos. Soon Scarfone finds the ordinary life of a fighter is not exciting enough and sets about to change that. A series of violent encounters, lead to the eventual kidnapping of the champion. Awesome fight scenes make Calasanz’s debut a must-see for the martial arts enthusiast. Crossing The Line was produced in Fairfield County, CT by Coast Entertainment. The movie played in theaters on the East Coast and in the Dominican Republic, where Calasanz is a national hero.
Truth be known, Calasanz/Shadowind quit the practice of goju at a green belt level, when he figured he didn’t need to learn any more. He still falsely claims to have a black belt in goju. Too bad his ego exceeds his learning capacity. This is not goju, it is calasanz bullshitziu.
Response:
Let’s get a few things straight before we go on any further. When you speak to “Shadowind,” you are speaking to a variety of staff members who work for Calasanz. He is too busy teaching and running a successful school. As far as your assessment of his credentials, you are extremely incorrect regarding his rank. If he were such a “bullshitziu” practitioner as you so disrespectfully call him, his teacher, Tameyoshi Sakamoto, father of Goju Ryu in the Dominican Republic, would have turned his back on him a long time ago.
Note: In a seminar in October 2009 at the Calasanz Dojo in Norwalk, CT, Tameyoshi Sakamoto awarded Calasanz a 5th degree in Goju Ryu Karate.
Sorry, regardless of Mr Calasanz’s background in Gojuryu, once he chooses to stray from the core principles of Goju, it is no longer Goju. If Mr Calasanz wants to have his own system, I have no drama with that, but this IS NOT GOJU…
And yes, I do “know something about martial arts”, having studied Gojuryu myself for over 40 years.
Enjoy your training with Mr C, but understand that it is not Gojuryu; it has morphed into something else entirely.
That in itself doesn’t make it a bad thing, it just isn’t Goju……….!
Response:
Thank you for your comments and observations. Calasanz martial art roots are in traditional Goju Ryu Karate, having trained with Master Sakamoto Tamajoshi for many years in the Dominican Republic. Calasanz still respects his traditional roots and the terms often end up in the titles of some of these video posts, even if remotely connected. The Calasanz System evolved over years of teaching and training and tuning in to what the general public is looking for in the martial arts. This system has endured for many years and continues to do so today, as evidenced by the many individuals who have trained with us. Unfortunately in today’s society, there is very little patience for the painstaking work that it takes to devote oneself to a traditional art, as someone with your many years of experience would know. Here in the United States, traditional schools are closing their doors at an alarming rate and surviving as a business involves growing and changing with the demands of the modern student.
My name is Maria Cruz. My friends and family call me “Estela.” My father died when I was 4 years old so my family and I went to live with my grandparents. Growing up without a father was very sad and the future looked very bleak. I knew that I had a cousin named Calasanz who lived in the city and had a reputation for helping others. It was Calasanz who gave me the opportunity to be able to live my dream.
In 1979, Calasanz asked my mother if I could go to the city with him and his sisters so I could get an education. His philosophy was that an education was an absolute necessity to becoming a successful person. The tangible results of this journey for me were huge. I graduated from college with a Bachelor degree in Hotel Administration. I now live in Miami, Florida where I work as an office manager, and am happily married, with two beautiful daughters. I instill in them the same philosophy that I learned from Calasanz…that nothing is beyond your reach.
Calasanz is an extraordinaire person who takes great pride in helping others achieve their goals. He is passionate about discovering what makes people joyful in regards to their body, mind, and health and makes it happen for them. Calasanz brings a sincere passion for coaching and mentoring others to recognize their capabilities and opportunities. I am one of the fortunate ones who made my dreams come true thanks to Calasanz.
