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Tom Leoni
Tom was born in Locarno, Switzerland and grew up in the Brianza region
of Northern Italy. His extensive education in the humanities included
the study of Latin, ancient Greek, history, philosophy, Early Music and
philology. Tom continued his academic studies at the Schola Cantorum
Basiliensis (Switzerland) and then at Texas Christian University where
he earned a Bachelor’s degree cum laude in classical music
composition and a Master’s in business administration.
Tom’s interest in swordsmanship began in the early Nineties, at which
time he started a serious and thorough investigation of most extant
primary sources from 16th and 17th century Italy. This analysis lead
him to a lifelong commitment to the rapier system of Salvator Fabris
(1544-1618). Thanks in great part to Tom’s research, Fabris has emerged
from the mists of history as one of the most celebrated rapierists of
his time and the founder of a long and illustrious fencing lineage
traceable well into the 18th century.
Tom’s methodology as a researcher and a teacher is strongly
philological, and relies on the direct and precise analysis of the
period texts within their cultural context. Thanks to this approach, he
and his students have been recognized as being singularly true to their
source and "looking like the book." As the leading researcher of the
rapier system of Fabris, Tom has published the first complete
critical English translation of the Scienza d'Arme. More recently, he has completed and published translations of Fiore de' Liberi's Fior di Battaglia, Antonio Manciolino's Opera Nova, Nicoletto Giganti's La Scuola, overo il Teatro and Ridolfo Capoferro's Gran Simulacro.
In 2009, Tom was a co-founder of Freelance Academy Press, a publishing company specializing in historical martial arts titles. He is currently completing a MA/PhD in medieval studies at Catholic University of America.
Tom may be contacted through the forums
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