cowpuncher
01-06-2009, 08:16 PM
As many of you know, I've been working on a theory that the original "Californio Bridle Horse" was, fundamentally, a dressage horse in a stock saddle. Not dressage in the modern sense of the word and discipline, but as espoused by the classical masters of the tradition.....Francois Robichon de la Gueriniere and William Cavendish, et al.......IN pursuit of this, I've been doing a LOT of reading and re-reading of the classical masters of dressage, both 18th and 19th century, and anything else related to classical dressage.....
These are what I've read recently, and all are HIGHLY recommended, regardless of riding discipline or interest.....
1.) Training the Horse in Hand: The Classic Iberian Principles by Alfons J. Dietz. The author spent 8 years at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, starting at age 15, and went on to train bullfighting horses in SPain and Portugal. While a lot of it was of no interest to me personally, (I don't long rein my horses), the sections on longe work and the work in hand according to the Iberian and Viennese schools was, as was the section on using the pillars. (I probably won't start using the pillars anytime soon though.....LOL)
2.) Tug-Of-War: Classical versus "Modern" Dressage, Why Classical Training Works, and How Incorrect Modern Riding Negativel Affects Horses' Health by Gerd Heuschmann.
The author is an equine veterinarian, and riding master in the German National Equestrian Federation. He was one of the team vets for the German Olympic team.
This was the first of these new books that I read recently, and it floored me. So much of what modern dressage teaches is fundamentally unhealthy for the horse. According to what Dr. Heuschmann states, the classical methods far more closely resemble the methods used to make modern reining and reined cowhorses than most of the dressage horses I've seen and been around. It's a VERY worthwhile book, and easy to read. I burned through it in about 4 hours (Admittedly, I'm a particularly rapid reader......), but I subsequently spent about a week pondering it and going back to re-read and take notes on sections.
3.) Twisted Truths of Modern Dressage: The Search for a Classical Alternative by Phillipe Karl. This author was an ecuyer of the Cadre Noir riding school in France. Like Dr. Heuschmann, he has little to say positive about modern dressage trends and methods. Unlike The preceeding author however, he does NOT take the German Federation's teachings as the gospel on horsemanship. In point of fact, he pretty much shoots down most of their underlying concepts, as well as those of the FEI rulebook, and points out that what they take as a "direct descent" of the teachings of La Gueriniere, are in fact, directly opposed to what he wrote. He doesn't really contradict anything that Heuschmann says though........This one was considerably more difficult to read, both due to my disdain for contemporary France, as well as the way he wrote it. It was DEFINITELY worth the effort though. It only took me a few hours also, but I intend to re-read it this weekend.
My next three on the list are:
A New System of Horsemanship by William Cavendish, First Duke of Newcastle. (A precedent of Gueriniere.)
Breaking and Riding by James Fillis (All of the above riders point out that while modern dressage badmouths both Fillis and Baucher, they were phenomenal trainers and horseman who made horses all the way to the haute ecole level.)
The Bit and The Reins: Developing Good Contact and Sensitive Hands by Gerhard Kapitzke. This just looks interesting. No one has accused me of having poor hands in a long, long while, but I'd like to see what he has to say, and maybe I can take something away that will improve me.
I HIGHLY recommend everyone take a look at the first three though!
These are what I've read recently, and all are HIGHLY recommended, regardless of riding discipline or interest.....
1.) Training the Horse in Hand: The Classic Iberian Principles by Alfons J. Dietz. The author spent 8 years at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, starting at age 15, and went on to train bullfighting horses in SPain and Portugal. While a lot of it was of no interest to me personally, (I don't long rein my horses), the sections on longe work and the work in hand according to the Iberian and Viennese schools was, as was the section on using the pillars. (I probably won't start using the pillars anytime soon though.....LOL)
2.) Tug-Of-War: Classical versus "Modern" Dressage, Why Classical Training Works, and How Incorrect Modern Riding Negativel Affects Horses' Health by Gerd Heuschmann.
The author is an equine veterinarian, and riding master in the German National Equestrian Federation. He was one of the team vets for the German Olympic team.
This was the first of these new books that I read recently, and it floored me. So much of what modern dressage teaches is fundamentally unhealthy for the horse. According to what Dr. Heuschmann states, the classical methods far more closely resemble the methods used to make modern reining and reined cowhorses than most of the dressage horses I've seen and been around. It's a VERY worthwhile book, and easy to read. I burned through it in about 4 hours (Admittedly, I'm a particularly rapid reader......), but I subsequently spent about a week pondering it and going back to re-read and take notes on sections.
3.) Twisted Truths of Modern Dressage: The Search for a Classical Alternative by Phillipe Karl. This author was an ecuyer of the Cadre Noir riding school in France. Like Dr. Heuschmann, he has little to say positive about modern dressage trends and methods. Unlike The preceeding author however, he does NOT take the German Federation's teachings as the gospel on horsemanship. In point of fact, he pretty much shoots down most of their underlying concepts, as well as those of the FEI rulebook, and points out that what they take as a "direct descent" of the teachings of La Gueriniere, are in fact, directly opposed to what he wrote. He doesn't really contradict anything that Heuschmann says though........This one was considerably more difficult to read, both due to my disdain for contemporary France, as well as the way he wrote it. It was DEFINITELY worth the effort though. It only took me a few hours also, but I intend to re-read it this weekend.
My next three on the list are:
A New System of Horsemanship by William Cavendish, First Duke of Newcastle. (A precedent of Gueriniere.)
Breaking and Riding by James Fillis (All of the above riders point out that while modern dressage badmouths both Fillis and Baucher, they were phenomenal trainers and horseman who made horses all the way to the haute ecole level.)
The Bit and The Reins: Developing Good Contact and Sensitive Hands by Gerhard Kapitzke. This just looks interesting. No one has accused me of having poor hands in a long, long while, but I'd like to see what he has to say, and maybe I can take something away that will improve me.
I HIGHLY recommend everyone take a look at the first three though!