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Back to For Freestyle page
Ruth Hogan-Poulsen
The Process
- 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)
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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)
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POULSEN DRESSAGE LLC