Howard was born in Hull in 1946 and began training under Chee Soo in 1973. He has been an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan and Feng Shou Kung Fu since 1976 and is the holder of 7th Tengchi Master Graded in both Tai Chi and Feng Shou (Kung Fu) and 3rd Tengchi in Chi Shu. He lives with his wife, artist Gisela, in Holme On Spalding Moor, East Yorkshire.
Howard’s early fascination for these arts soon grew into a life-time vocation, realizing that they went beyond a purely physical discipline, but was also a tool for self-development, spiritual growth, and a way of helping himself and others to achieve holistic health and well-being. Extremely proficient in the Feng Shou self defence arts, Howard nevertheless felt a special love for the various forms, K’ai Men and Dao Yin. In fact he is famous for being Chee Soo’s only instructor who practised the Tai Chi form every morning, with the exception of Christmas Day, for 15 years! (And he is still practising with an odd exception, on a daily basis!
Chee Soo had hundreds, perhaps thousands of students who entered his training halls through the years, but in the end there were only four in the country who stayed long enough to gain the highest Master Grade Chee Soo issued in his life time. One of those students was Howard, respected by his peers as the foremost authority on the Lee Family Tai Chi form. Howard’s and Chee Soo’s friendship was legendary and it is a privilege for those who today train under Howard to be shown an art so ancient, taught as he was taught, undiluted by fads and fashions, imbued with love, enthusiasm, precision and quality.
Chee Soo passed away in 1994. In order to safeguard the continuation of the Arts and their philosophy, Howard founded the East-West Taoist Association in 1999.
Howard holds regular all-day courses and grading days at Holme On Spalding Moor, East Yorkshire. For more information about classes, courses or training aids check out the links above.
James Anderson
I would just like to say a personal 'Thank You' to you for your continuing to share your extensive knowledge and skill of our Lee Style Tai Chi with me and all your students, and for all your help during the times that I manage to get down from Edinburgh to attend your courses.
You make training with you a real pleasure, and I have over time come to realise that not only have I been leaning more about our wonderful arts whilst there, but also about myself. I look forward to meeting up and training with you once again soon.
The potential benefits of learning Tai Chi are enormous and varied...
If you suffer from tension and stress, you will find that, with practice, Tai Chi will help you will learn to relax, and be able to do so whenever you wish.
If you are shy and timid you will find that in time you will improve your posture and breathing, making you in turn feel more balanced, confident and in control of yourself.
If you suffer from anger and frustration you will soon remember again the natural beauty and rhythm in life, which cannot be forced, but lived with in harmony.
If you suffer from ill health, you will find that the practice of Tai Chi will help improve your general health and well-being, increase your energy, tone your muscles, stretch your body, improve your posture and balance, improve your immune system and circulation, improve your strength and flexibility. We could go on and on...
And if you are perfectly healthy and happy, you will find that Tai Chi is a beautiful, life-affirming thing to do.