A few mornings ago I was walking down a busy downtown street during rush hour. The world felt slow; cars crawled towards an unending stream of red lights, drivers planted in their seats. Out of nowhere, two young men on svelte road bikes appeared, weaving in and out of traffic. They were challenging one another, taunting and shouting, grinning maniacally all the while. Their enemy was the environment, and sure of victory, they approached the fight with reverence and respect. But make no mistake: they were enjoying the hell out of it.
Meeting David M. Cvet was kind of like seeing those two young men racing down the road: he is all sureness and energy, bound together in an enormous 6’7” frame. The progenitor of the AEMMA (pronounced ‘Emma’), or Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts, Cvet’s organization is dedicated to recreating the philosophies and combat techniques of l´arte dell´armizare, based on an early 15th-century manuscript by Fiore dei Liberi. It details in both verse and illustration various combat and defence techniques using weapons common to a medieval fighter: daggers, swords, spears, and poleaxes.
Cvet saw the manuscript while on contract work in Italy in the late 1990s and instantly realized he could combine his fascination of medieval history with his love of steel weaponry, especially swords. “I wanted to do a martial arts activity that is not a re-enactment,” he says, referring to places like Medieval Times, the suburban spectacle that has more in common with theatre than combat. Instead, he aimed to reconstruct the art from scratch, and to adhere to its concepts as closely as possible.
When he got back to Canada, Cvet recruited a few like-minded friends and began applying what he knew of the manuscript to his own training. He soon retired from his day job as an IT specialist and dedicated his life to spreading medieval martial arts throughout Toronto. AEMMA has since grown into a non-profit school where history buffs and weapons nuts alike can pursue the strengthening of one’s mind and body. A dedicated group of about 25 men and women now train several times a week. “It has to be a lifestyle choice,” says David. “My wife refers to AEMMA as the other woman.”
Like many of the Eastern martial arts, AEMMA incorporates three elements into its rigorous training: books, brain, and brawn. “Eighty per cent of fighting is inside your head. You want to look for opportunities to take advantage [of your opponent] and not turn it into a brawl.” Many of AEMMA’s members spend as much time wielding bookmarks as they do broadswords, and, according to Aaron Bolarhino, both are equally important.
An AEMMA member for four years, 21-year-old Aaron has received the rank of scholler, or scholar, an accomplishment earned by enduring savage bouts against several provosts¸ or masters, with a range of weapons of his choosing. He currently heads AEMMA UofT, and, with Cvet’s help, is recruiting on campus. “AEMMA is one of my favourite courses at U of T,” he says, referring to the heavy emphasis on studying the many theories associated with Fiore’s manuscript. He commutes from Kitchener twice a week to attend university, and to practice. Lean, muscular, and goateed, he comfortably embodies both the scholar and the martial artist persona that AEMMA nurtures. But, he assures me, it is the sheer exhilaration of the fight that keeps him coming back.
“Human beings are inherently violent,” says Cvet, smirking. “Here is a chance to turn that violence into something useful. It helps you grow as a person, and I tell you, when you get into a free play fight, and you’re doing armoured fencing with swords, with spears, it’s freakin’ intense. But you know what, all the while we’ve got a big smile on our face. It is just so much fun.”
Watch for AEMMA UofT around campus, and check out a real tournament on Saturday, March 21, at the ROM.
