The Budo Shingikan School of Japanese Martial Arts is a Dojo much like I had gone to when I started my Martial Arts Experience in 1965. This Dojo is a very traditional Japanese style school where the student is the apprentice and the Instructors are the Craftsman. But it is more than just the Kancho (Head of the School) or His Instructor's (Sensei) that instructs the new students ... it is done as a community where all of the higher students help the newer students. This makes all the training more personal and gives even more family / camaraderie feel to the training. Their Dojo is very reasonably priced because of this extended family atmosphere of passing on new skills to each member instead of a money making business. After all - to do Akido or Jujitsu properly and safely one has to have a lot of two way trust going.
Kancho D'Antonoli has a wonderful calm peaceful approach to Akido and his dynamic easy going nature sets the proper stage. Sensei Berghain takes the student safely into the realm of explosive JiuJitsu into that confidence area early on with his smooth manners and open dynamics. The weapon classes merge and identify the cross training of the weapon with the weaponless forms of Martial Arts bring the harmony of the two instead of teaching like they are separate skills. All of the Instructors have that calm patience and skills to train new techniques, no matter how complex, in a natural easy to learn manner. Each Instructor cross learns from each other's expertise and brings a vast repertoire of knowledge to the mat and there are Instructors that rotate in from other schools - the commonality of which is their passionate, friendly manner of breaking things down to make Martial Arts training a gentle controlled art.
I had no reservations in enrolling my 14yr old son and he is loving the experience! He started as a 7yr old in an ATA Taekwondo school and is a 3rd Degree Black Belt in that style. But here at this Dojo he has a whole new experience with real world type of skills in a traditional Family style Japanese School of Martial Arts. He returns excited from class every session.
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