Complete mastery, nothing comparable to what you see nowadays! Very well controlled techniques, powerful movement, sharp and crisp executions, very good timing...what else is there ??!
Excellent! Does anyone remember another excellent forms competitor Andre Sack from Toronto 🇨🇦 in the late 80s? I remember seeing him do his muscial STAR WARS form 💫
I knew Jean Frenette as I competed in the forms division at several East Coast tournaments that he and I were in. He was very VERY good especially in the musical forms category. I really enjoyed watching him perform
Really good performance! I would like to see those "imaginary enemys" he fights in this kata. There must be like 40 of them, and some had to be at least 2,40 meters compared to the hight oh his kicks ;)
Well...if you find that so easy to kick as high as he can (and at his age) while following the rhythm in the meanwhile...I'm a karate traditionalist, I know the Canadian Tornado and I can say that this man is indeed a genius!
This is the first time i seen him do a form, it's incredible! I just saw someone do a copy of his form, that kid didn't come close to what Jean has done.
I think this is very good compromise between traditional kata and the show. He requires full force to do all the strikes and kicks. And he is 5`6", so he needed to kick high due to his sparring competitions(5 times world karate champion, WAKO). He is also mastering his traditional karate styles and is visiting old Okinawa masters to develop his knowledge. Tell me, how many of todays music forms champs can do traditional kata in regular way...
Of course it is a show, it's a "Show Kata" after all. Which normal Kata contains music? Still, this is on a very high level, even if it is only done for show.
Brilliant performance from a a real athlete. His flexibility and control are perfect. Only doubt I have is the power behind his technique, but that's me being picky. Well done J!!!
+Derek Lee Hello Derek. Sorry for the very late reply. ..no disrespect. My impression was linked to what I have seen from watching other videos especially from some of the Japanese karate masters. But as I say it is my impression.
All the experts that talk about what Katas should be and Jean is fighting guys ten feet tall - apparently you cant do the math. Jean is 5 foot 6 and one half inches tall his kicks would be to a mans face who is approximately 6 feet to 6 feet two. Oh by the way Kata means "formal exercise" and I would say that what Jean Frenette is doing constitutes exercise - The guy is a five time world champion, and if you do a little research you will see is a a true martial artist in every sense of the word.
No, it'a not composed for Jean. It is the musical partition for a very popular pop music back then. Can't remember the title.... fuk I hear it in my head but... ah muther fuk, promess if found out i let ya know.
jean frenzy is a good teacher karate es of 6 dan Goju Ryu bunkais and practices of the major katas estilo tambien this is a good teacher ryu hace Shito major operations goshin su jyu kumite and kata techniques in demonstrate a high quality music as well karateca sus kicks are made to any altura el kata ertistico It is a work of exivicion no is a martial art, so this free lojica Bunkai as well as to make it more espectacular oosss
I do admit that the music was definately gay, but Jean Frennete is a great karate demonstrator. He is supposedly one of the most deadliest and strongest karate kickers in the world. Just by seeing how fast he could kick, I wouldn't go anywhere near him.
This is the musical form to end all musical forms. And do you know why? It's filled WITH ACTUAL TECHNIQUES. That you can clearly see, beautiful kicks as well, unlike those modern day musical forms, it's just a bunch of bullshit flipping and no technique at all. It would be better suited if it was a gymnastic musical competition, but not a martial arts form competition. Oh well. Jean Frenette was the prototype for the musical kata, and no one will top him.
ye its not karate its xma the guy just screwed the name up but at around this guys time they didnt call it xma they called it musical kata, which is like a form made by the competitor for entertainment
Hah... I used to dig Jean Frenette when I was a kid and he deserves all the respect as a sort of pioneer of musical forms, but come on, man... A bald 40yo Canadian who looks like a computer programmer does the very same kata for more than a decade, its biggest highlight being perhaps a spinning hook kick and a front split, yet gets a standing ovation at Bercy, travels the world with it, and so on... Only ten years later, 17 year old kids would be jumping 720 and 900 degree spinning kicks and gainer combos at freestyle karate tournaments and wouldnt get half the attention. Different times indeed.
@Peter Alexander Well some time later I found out Ernie Reyes Jr (the guy who now serves as Diaz brothers´ striking coach) did a very similar looking form on the same music on TV back in 1982 I believe.
I see Jean shaved that Tom Seleck broom of a moustache off,it really shed bad light on that protrouding forehead,still Jean is a good forms guy,been round a long time
@singhakabuttar You all need to realise that all martial arts and fighting has a rythm and even hundreds of years ago martial arts was practiced to a rythm what do you think Kata is? it has rythm does it not, so this type of show is a progression and without progress we stand still?, if nothing else it would keep you fit also all martial arts going back hundreds of years had competitions even the shaolin
@singhakabuttar You all need to realise that all martial arts and fighting has a rythm and even hundreds of years ago martial arts was practiced to a rythm what do you think Kata is? it has rythm does it not, so this type of show is a progression and without progress we stand still?, if nothing else it would keep you fit
He appears to be a very good Goju Ryu stylist. It's very surprising to me how he's able to have been a forms champion with him being in Goju Ryu. But, because of the style, it translates well into his artistic expression. He looks more hardcore now as a baldy then when he had hair. With the receeding hairline, he looked like a crazy Canadian. *heheh*. Not offense to any Canadians who read this. I had a friend who is part-Canadian and she and I would toss back taunts about Canada and the USA.
@Budopower1 wushu was a martial art turned sport, similarly this musical forms crap has turned the concept of kata, into a showcase, so you cant call both martial arts, wushu/musical forms are sports, martial arts are military fighting arts, such as okinawan karate, along with other martial arts, that are designed for such purposes, so there is a point Budo power. a boat is also for transportation but it would be no good on a motorway!
@danvanbelk1 years ago martial arts were practiced on the battlefields, yes they had challenge matches to the death, i have nothing against healthy competition either, boxing, kick/thaiboxing, mma. Martialarts has rythm, it has broken rythm, everything in life has rythm, breathing even has a rythm, but that doesnt make dancing and martial arts the same thing does it, so why insult the kata by doing it to music, by doing so you are spitting on the graves of the founders of these arts.
@NONAMEACCESSIBLE you mean shove if up not down, and no he can not actually do that. you may have met him but you do not know what he has done to others in the industry. Wake up!
@barretlightm82a1 if you believe that training in musical forms is the way martial arts should be practiced then please continue, just understand this, kata has many hidden techniques, which most of them need to be researched for the application of these particular moves, read Eiichi Miyazatos book, this takes many years to do! we have different goals, so there is no need to carry on with this discussion, soldiers DO learn real martial arts, you have a very dim view about martial arts!!!
@zoroastrodamed every soldier who is taught unarmed combat isw taught effective martial techniques smart arse, real martial arts are still practiced the world over, they are not all sports orientated, what do you think the word martial means, does it mean dancing to music with unrealistic moves, this dancing kata is a complete insult to kata, and its application, tell me why do people do martial arts? what is its purpose? what should be its purpose? in your view? be honest!!!
SMH You know his Technique is actually ok. But the thing is Martial arts supposed to be about the martial part. Granted there are too many people who dismiss forms Just like there are also people who do way too much of them, and this is an Excellent example. Martial arts is not made For people to Twirl their feet to to the beat. Thats why they have dance contests! Disappointing
Jean Frenette is a fake. Choreography is nothing in the end. He acts tough on sets but will not do anything because he has no courage to be a real fighter. His career is over...
