In-Person & Online Private Lessons
The best way for many people to learn tai chi or qigong is through private lessons.
Your instructor focuses exclusively on teaching you or your group in the best way possible to meet your needs, including when you are available and how you best learn.
We offer in-person lessons at our studio in Northampton.
We can also offer you lessons online that replicate surprisingly well the in-person experience.
To experience one of our private classes, you can choose to study with Dan Winter, or inquire about studying with Bill Ryan:
Kathryn Komidar is not teaching private lessons at this time.
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Private Lessons with Dan Winter
We recommend that you study with Dan if you wish to learn or refine the core practices of tai chi and qigong that we teach.
He is available for indoor, outdoor, or online lessons for individuals or small groups in Wu Style Tai Chi (Short and Medium Forms), Energy Gates Qigong, and Dragon & Tiger Qigong.
He enjoys teaching people to “fish”. He will give you a movement to learn and practice, and will help you to understand and embody the principles at work in tai chi and qigong. That way you can learn to apply those principles to new movements and situations, inside and outside of practice.
Dan has studied at Toward Harmony with Bill and Kathryn since 2010. He has also attended a number of intensive trainings with Bruce Frantzis.
Dan started learning qigong and tai chi to escape from chronic lower back pain, and has been largely successful in that pursuit. Yet he says, “Study of tai chi and qigong led me to something much bigger, something I had been looking for long before I developed back pain - a more deeply connected experience of life.”
“When I first encountered the Tao Te Ching in my first year of college, I thought it was profound and beautiful, but I had no idea how to “do” it. Your lessons—and the tradition in which you teach—give me that critical element. I am confident that if I practice what you show me, I am on the right path. ”
Fees:
30 minutes - $45
45 minutes - $60
1 hour - $75
How to Make an Appointment:
Please click here to make your appointment(s) online and pay by credit card through our website.
If you have questions about whether an appointment with Dan is appropriate for your needs or interests, please email us at info@towardharmony.com.
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Private Lessons with Bill Ryan
Bill has been practicing tai chi and qigong for over 40 years and teaching full-time professionally for more than 30.
He teaches private lessons for individuals or small groups indoors at our studio, and also online. His availability at any time is dependent on whether he is accepting new students.
We recommend that you check in with Bill about the possibility of lessons if you are an experienced student in our tradition or if you are dealing with difficult body or energetic situations.
“I signed up for one online private session with Bill Ryan using the Zoom platform and I was surprised at how remarkably seamless it was to receive instruction using this format. I have since participated in several online private lessons with Bill, and each time I found it to be immensely helpful. Bill was able to give highly specific feedback regarding pain I was experiencing, and there seemed to be no barrier in his ability to observe subtle phenomena in my body and provide valuable personalized instruction. It has been a wonderful opportunity during COVID-19 to continue studying Qigong with Bill, and to do it from the safety and convenience of my home.”
Bill is particularly skilled in helping people use qigong or tai chi to enhance recovery from injuries, illnesses, surgeries, or other traumas.
He can be especially helpful to long-time students or instructors in our tradition who practice a lot, but do not have regular access to a highly skilled teacher.
“Bill is a really great qigong teacher. With him you don’t just get refinements to the physical movements of a set. Even working remotely by video, he can perceive by the way your body moves whether the qi is going below the ground and above the head, when it is returning into the hands and feet and when it is settling in the tantien. He also offers practice tips to help sort out particular weaknesses, such as low flexibility ankles. Not only that, he also makes his points in a way that motivates you to take them on board in a spirit of joyful exploration. What more could you want from a teacher?!”
He can quickly help you to identify weak areas or long-term habits in your study or practice that are holding you back. With his guidance you can significantly advance your skills and deepen your development.
He can also guide you when you are experiencing major chi “releases” or shifts in your system.
Bill can help you with various practices taught by our teacher, Master Bruce Frantzis, up to the levels he feels are appropriate for you to learn and are within his ability to teach, including:
any of the qigong/neigong sets, except Spiraling Energy
Wu Style Tai Chi Short, Medium, and Long Forms
Bagua’s Circlewalking and Single Palm or Double Palm Changes
Hsing I’s Santi and Five Element practices
Fees:
45 minutes - $120
1 hour - $150
How to Make an Appointment:
Please email Bill at info@towardharmony.com or call him at 617-990-6985 to:
let him know the nature of your interest, including whether you are considering in-person or online instruction;
inquire about whether he thinks he could be helpful to you;
find out whether he is taking new students; and
if there seems to be a good match, learn how to register for a session with him.
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