New product available for all ... Custom CD's and DVD's of your horse, music and pattern with instructional voice over, for perfect visualization of your ride every time. Practice your freestyle and memorize you musical transitions with the help of a DVD or CD with narration without drilling your horse over and over...

NEW PRODUCT SAMPLE:  an example of the narrated instructional CD will automatically start playing when you enter this page. 

 Are you in need of a professionally produced musical freestyle for a competition, or are you interested in developing a better relationship with your horse through  music?

In either case, Ruth Hogan Poulsen can help you... begin the learning process through these pages. 

Click here for brochure and pictures

The process of creating a musical freestyle or just music to ride and train your horse to is an exciting one... You must start by making goals. You must be clear for what purpose you are wanting to ride to music.

The Goals          Before you start to think about making a musical freestyle, you should have some clear goals in mind. You must be able to answer some questions. What will this musical freestyle be used for?  What level will you be competing with this music?  What type of competition will you be competing in? ( Local or USDF or FEI  or National or International?) Have you ever competed with a musical Freestyle before?  Have you fulfilled you proficiency requirements for competing in the level you wish to? Are you aware of the requirements for the freestyle you would like to prepare? Are you aware of your horses strengths and weaknesses?  If you are an amateur, do you have a trainer who can help you make decisions and give you feedback on correct tempo for your horse? What kind of horse do you ride? Are there any outstanding characteristics about you or you horse that would help your selection of music?  Do you have any instincts or ideas about what kind of music will suite your partnership? What age group do you fall in?  (Jr. or Young Rider, Open or Vintage Cup?)

click here for this list of questions to print... Free.

The Process:

1. The first thing to do is to determine your horse's tempos at walk, trot, canter, and piaffe/passage if applicable. Each client will need to send me a video or DVD of your horse. I’ll provide detailed instructions on what is needed on the video once we have agreed to get started.  We will  then discuss what kinds of music would suit his or her personality and physiology and yours. If you have a preference for a particular musical genre, or if there are kinds of music that you would like to avoid, you should tell me at this point. We will work together on the music selection until we are both 100% satisfied. (More on music later)

2. Once several potential theme pieces of music have been found, I will send you a sample CD ( usually trot and canter music only). You will need to listen to the music and ride to it, or watch a video of your horse working to it. This step is important in determining what music complements your horse, and what 'feels good' to ride to. The tempo may not be right on at this point - that comes later with editing. Other peoples options are also important... we need to please the spectator, you and the Judges.

3. Once we have decided on the pieces of music to use for the trot and canter sections, I will select the walk and introduction music. I am a firm believer in thematic and instrumental consistency; it is important in giving the freestyle cohesiveness and flow. All the pieces of music in your freestyle will sound like they belong together. A theme for you freestyle can be instrumentally  related ,genre related, movie titles, or the like, the judges need to have some kind of cohesive  feeling that ties the music together in some way.

4. The choreography comes next. Depending on whether or not I am helping you design the pattern and your level, I can either send you the edited music to work with, or I can edit the music after the pattern has been designed. If I am doing your choreography, I will now work with you to put together the pattern and get the timing right. If you are doing the choreography yourself, you will need to provide me with an accurate video of the entire pattern from beginning to end with no interruptions or mistakes... including the entrance.

5. Once we have finalized the music cuts and timing, I will do the final edit of the music using special software to produce broadcast quality digital CD's and DVD's for viewing practice and for showing.  You will receive both CD's and DVD's  of your music and your pattern to show and to practice with.

Once we have your music selected, listen to it over and over (and over!). The better you know it, the more easily you will be able to stay on time in your pattern. You will also get the rhythm of the music imprinted on your memory, which will help you to keep an even tempo when riding to it. If things go wrong while you are performing it at a competition - and they will- knowing your music completely will make recovery easier, and you may even keep the judges from detecting that you are improvising on the spot. For example, your horse may "grow" at shows and cover more ground therefore getting ahead in the music, or you may have and unexpected spook, that will take up time and leave you behind your mark.... these things happen... to all of us...Know where your markers are and if you have a problem, look to arrive at your next marker when you are supposed to.  (The instructional CD's and the instructional DVD will be of great help for memorization)

The Time Table:

You should allow 2-3 months from the moment of conception of wanting to do a freestyle.  I will do RUSH orders, and deal with "Freestyle Emergencies"... you'll pay extra, but when you need it... you get it...  Ruth

The Music:

The Final Product:

    With any of the final products, there are standard items that you will receive.                        

        1. 2 Broadcast quality CD's for Showing. One Show CD, and one back-up CD.

        2. 1 Practice CD of your music exactly the same as your show CD.

        3.  1 Practice CD of your music with a instructional narration, to help your learn your music and the transitions   .

        4.  1 Practice DVD of your music, over laid onto a DVD of your test pattern and choreography, with instructional narration, so you can see and hear your test together with the music and hear the  musical transitions. This insures that you are prepared and understand the phrasing and musical transitions for you and your horse.