Martin Fabian is more than just one of the greatest fencers of a generation; spending years as the world's #1 ranked Longsword fencer, he's also an ardent scholar and a tremendous communicator. In ancient times (ie. Medieval and Renaissance) that would've made him a master—or more adroitly, an effective teacher of the art. Regarding the contemporarily forbidden title, Giovanni dall'Agocchie says, “(I)t is one thing to know, and another to teach. The difference is plain; because one who only has pra...
Martin Fabian is more than just one of the greatest fencers of a generation; spending years as the world's #1 ranked Longsword fencer, he's also an ardent scholar and a tremendous communicator. In ancient times (ie. Medieval and Renaissance) that would've made him a master—or more adroitly, an effective teacher of the art.
Regarding the contemporarily forbidden title, Giovanni dall'Agocchie says, “(I)t is one thing to know, and another to teach. The difference is plain; because one who only has practice is good for laboring for himself; but he who has theory is good for others; and he who has both theory and practice is good for himself and others. And such were those who were authentically made Masters.”
To me, Fechtbuch Fabian is a masterpiece, a wonderful erudition of practical knowledge gained through over 25 years of experience at the highest level and a deep theoretical exposition of the Kunst des Fechtens tradition born from years of passionate study, translation and thought. Feel free to disagree. I hope what you will find in Fechtbuch Fabian and in this podcast is proof of that claim.
In the pages of Fechtbuch Fabian you'll discover a practicum of firsthand experience outlining the terminology and concepts of the KdF tradition. Then, you'll get into Martin's translation of Codex Speyer which affords the reader of primary source motus for his claims and interpretations. It's a thesis of Martin’s life work and commitment to the Liechtenauer tradition.
Medel is a different animal. This challenging text is full of both historiographical intrigue—for the nerd like me—and a different outlook on fencing, a commentary by a master fencer, who doesn't always agree with the way things were done and had his own ideas on how they should be.
It's impossible to overstate the value and importance of Hans Medel in the compendium of KdF fechtbuchs. Any scholar of the tradition would be remiss to find their collection devoid of this tremendous work.
All of Martin's books are self published, wonderfully illustrated, and beautifully bound with the highest quality of materials. They're legacy pieces that are sure to impress, and stand will stand proud with cover or spine on any fencers bookshelf.
Martin Fabian’s Books can be found here: https://martinfabian.sk/en/
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