Jim Tschen Emmons
Training
Jim began fencing foil in 1986 and has had the good fortune to work with several well-respected maestri since that time: Maestro Edwin “Buzz” Hurst (at UC Santa Barbara, CA), Maestro Al Couturier (at UC Santa Barbara and Salle d’Armes Couturier, Culver City, CA), and Maitre Delmar Calvert (at Salle Trois Armes, Portland, OR). Of these masters he spent the most time with M. Couturier and his assistants. Al was a student of Maestro Joseph Vince, a graduate of the Hungarian fencing program, who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1920s. Vince learned fencing at an exciting time in Budapest, a time when the influence of Giuseppe Radaelli’s reforms mixed with Hungarian elements to create the Italo-Hungarian school.
A firm believer that one remains a student no matter how long one has studied, how much one has achieved, or how many certifications one might hold, Jim continues to study and train with other coaches as often as possible. He has been a member of the USFCA (United States Fencing Coaches Association) and takes classes as often as possible. He earned a Moniteur d’escrime in sabre via the USFCA and in 2024 earned his Prévôt d’Armes via Barbasetti Military Sabre (since 1895). In addition to running SdTS Jim works with Capitale Escrime Historical Fencing (Salem, OR), and teaches youth and adult fencing classes at Chehalem Parks & Recreation.
Competitive Experience
Prior to fencing, Jim spent several years in Tae Kwon Do as taught by Grand Master Jhoon Rhee and his coaches, especially Jeff Smith at the Annandale (VA) Do Jang. This system is a mix of Chung Do Kwan, ITF TKD, and elements Rhee added. Thought Rhee’s approach was self-defense oriented, Jim competed for several years in the DC and Mid-Atlantic region; that experience was good training for the vagaries of competitive fencing. Jim competed in sabre as member of UC Santa Barbara’s Fencing Team from 1991-3 and 1994-6, as well as in USFA tourneys in the SoCal division. He left competitive fencing to focus on classical & historical fencing in 1996.
Teaching
Jim began teaching when assigned by his maestri, first Maestro Couturier and his assistant coaches, then later by Maitre Calvert, to help newer fencers with drill. Jim’s approach to teaching individual fencers is a mix of what his masters taught him with adjustments made for age, conditioning, and personality (not everyone learns the same way).
Group instruction, in many ways, mirrors the individual lesson, but places higher demands on student and teacher alike. There is no substitute for individual lessons–it is still the best method through which to learn to fence–but group classes allow for drill with partners of different sizes, speeds, and skill-levels, all of which are valuable in our growth as fencers.
Community Building
One of Jim’s goals is to build a viable historical sabre community in the Portland area specifically and the PNW in general. Though there have been fits and starts, some of these efforts have certainly helped. The first sabre seminar Jim put together, in 2015, covered Henry Angelo’s infantry sword manual (1845), the system under study at Academia Duellatoria (now defunct), where Jim occasionally fenced and helped prepare students for the AHF tourney. In this first seminar he collaborated with Velah Gilbert, then a student there, and a serious student of sabre.
In 2016 he and his friend, Will Richmond (NWFC), were invited to introduce sabre (Italian/Italo-Hungarian) to Grit City HEMA in Tacoma. The success of that class led to further seminars, first at Indes WMA, where Jim worked with Brent Lambell to turn Indes’ KdF fighters into sabre fans, then twice at Herzstich Dueling Guild in Tacoma (the last time with Christopher Bigelow from Northwest Fencing Academy).
From 2016 to 2018 Jim headed the sabre program at Northwest Armizare, co-teaching it with his first adult student, Natalie Rowland. She ran the Indes WMA sabre program for a time before she and her husband took up Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. In 2019 Jim taught additional sabre seminars at High Desert Armizare, in Bend, and returned to Indes (now Indes Ferox Gladio) to provide a refresher course. In between these seminars Jim taught sabre or helped out with demonstrations everywhere from the Oregon Renaissance Faire to the Sherwood Robin Hood Festival. He has presented at Swordsquatch (2017), the Thundermark Armored Deed (2018), and the University Club of Portland, this last in concert with other area historical fencers. While still on social media, Jim assisted Velah Gilbert and Jay Maas in managing the largest page devoted to sabre on Facebook, the “Military/Classical Sabre” page, with over 10,000 members from all over the world.
In 2020 & 2021 Jim delivered several online lectures/discussions. One, an examination of problems in interpreting illustrations in Bolognese sources, Jim delivered online at Northwest Armizare. Looking at a later period, this time at Sala della Spada (Carlisle, PA), Jim shared research he was working on that concerned an odd interpretation of the lunge in historical fencing circles. In related work, Jim has had the honor to chat with the renowned scholar of Persian martial arts, Dr. Manouchechr Khorasani at Razmafzar TV (Youbtue), on several occasions, discussing everything from historical fencing generally, to French smallsword (with Ken Jay), and Radaellian sabre (with Mike Cherba). From time to time Jim has happily provided a target for Mike Cherba, Northwest Armizare, a key researcher in the marital arts of the Republic of Georgia, and acted as Mike’s pell when he and Dr. Khorasani discussed the intricacies of Georgian sword and buckler and when Mike presented at Swordsquatch.
More recently (Spring/Summer 2021), he advised the broadsword pod of Northwest Armizare (the school, because of Covid, met in small groups by topic). Jim also began classes again at CPRD, though in limited sizes to remain pandemic friendly. In October 2021 Jim flew to Prague, Czechia, as a visiting instructor at SabreSlash 2021, a two day event consisting of workshops, a sabre tourney, a cutting seminar, and truly excellent comaraderie and pilsner. In April of 2023 Jim headed to Atlanta, Texas, to teach Radaellian sabre at the St. George’s Day Exhibition of Arms hosted by Russ Mitchell and the good folk at Winged Sabre Historical Fencing (Dallas, TX, USA).
In March 2024, Jim was honored to be invited to teach at The Rose & Thorns Historical Fencing Symposium in Auburn, California. This fantastic event includes several rapier and smallsword tournies, lectures, and classes. Jim taught an introductory course on the transitional rapier of Maistre Charles Besnard (Le maistre d’arms liberal,1653).
Late April 2024 Jim will travel to Texas again for the St. George’s Day Exhibition of Arms hosted by the redoubtable Russ Mitchell and the wonderful people at Winged Sabre Historical Fencing.
Connections made with Barbasetti Military Sabre in Prague led to Jim joining the school formally as a student. In 2023, he was awarded the rank of Prévôt d’armes; in September of 2025, he traveled to Prague to attend and teach at SabreSlash 2025, and, took his master’s examination. Jim is now a maitre d’armes and runs one of the school’s first North American satellite programs.
Research, Interviews, & Media
Capitale Escrime Historical Fencing 