The Academic Art of Riding |
by Jacquie Billington
|
A bit about Bent Branderup
The Academic Art of Riding by Bent Branderup is beginning to be known about a little in UK, but it is still not widely known here. Bent Branderup draws from the writings of the old masters - Pluvinel, Gueriniere and Steinbrecht, Baucher, but adds to these a modern understanding of equine bio mechanics. Bent is interested in history and ethnology and he was a student at Jerez de La Frontera at the Escuela Analuza del Arte Equestre in the days before it had acquired the prefix “Real” (meaning Royal), studying for 2 years there as a personal student of Maestro Don Javier. After this the most prominent trainers Bent visited and trained with were Salvador Sanchez, Nuno Oliveira and Egon VonNeindorff . Bents stallion Hugin had very badly damaged hocks and left front coronet joint from an accident. He had three cracked bones in three legs. From Hugin, Bent learned to make the important distinction to use dressage for the horse to heal him and not use the horse for dressage. He says that every day he learns from the horses he rides and fro his students horses. His hope is that more people can discover the greatest pleasure and Art that can exist between a human and a horse, as experienced in the centuries of European cultural heritage. He thinks you must train your body and your mind as a prerequisite to developing the skills. He says that good riding cannot be bought, it must be acquired through hard work.
AAoR Clinics at Stonehaven
The lectures from the accredited, selected trainers of the AAoR by Bent Branderup at Stonehaven are delivered either by Power Points ,which are projected onto a screen in the lecture room, or by using a flip chart, illustrating the lecture topics as they progress. The lectures cover the basics of how and why we need to help with horses natural or acquired asymmetries, which exercises will help resolve which problems, and how to identify which common problems are caused by which common asymmetries.
AAoR training will equally help a horse who is reactive and tense, or conversely it will also help a horse who is sluggish and dead to leg. A horse who is sluggish and seems lazy, a horse who rushes or is spooky and hyper alert and fearful, a horse who is running in trot or canter, or is unable to strike off correct canter lead on one or the other rein, or is unable to bend around a circle on one or both reins, a horse who rears or bucks, or falls in on circles, motorbiking around the corners, feels unstoppable, or is taking short choppy steps, a horse who moves with a high head, a bulging under-neck in fake collection, a shortened compressed neck with a dropping back not using the hind legs can all be symptoms of various kinds of asymmetry and stiffness of the horses body which can be resolved.
Fear must never play a part in any aspect of equine education, as a horse educated with fear will eventually find something they fear more than the educator themselves. So identifying the very earliest and most subtle signs of rising fear and increased stress in the horse is a very important skill to acquire, as by the time the horse feels the need to express the fear or stress obviously, it has already passed a long way over that horses threshold and the earliest signs have been missed altogether. Therefore, the first “stiffness” to overcome is that of the horses mind - and to do this, the human must work on their own stiffness of the mind first! This requires honesty to look inside and gaze at yourself, and it can be very hard to change your own long standing behavioural history and change your relationship with horses. Humans are always part of the problem - and it is highly important to remember that and remember to remain open minded to change. A horse will not initiate changes in behavioural patterns until the human behaviour patterns change first. A horse educated with fear is reactive. A horse educated without fear is responsive. This is an important distinction to make. Of course unexpected situations do arise in training and thresholds are crossed by accident, and this is perfectly normal and acceptable - just as long as it is not happening daily in the same ways and an anxious, stressed or angry horse is not the norm.
“If a horse is educated with force, then force will be required to ride it.”
The Academic Art of Riding by Bent Branderup appeals to intelligent, thoughtful and caring horse owners, people who think of their horses as being more to them than just a furry quad bike to have fun on. It offers and approach that embodies peace and calmness leading to a more harmonious relationship with your horse, helping your horse remain sound and comfortable well into old age. Bents own horses are not the crème de la crème of horses but they often continue with high school work well into their late 20s and this is the theme with his trainers and students: they are working with less than perfect horses, and have a desire to provide the best all round training for their horses benefit.
A brief over view of the sequence of work used in AAoR
The horses are trained from the ground up, with an aim for all of the aids to be transferable to ridden aids, so that once we ride, the whole system makes sense to the horse. For this reason it is not just about visual body aids, it also must be about the aids given by the whip, the hands and the reins. These secondary aids are first taught from the ground. There is an emphasis on the horses being trained systematically but with sufficient flexibility to suit each animal, and never with fear or domination. Before any training can begin, a relationship with the horse based on a calm two way trust, and the kind of respect that is not born from fear must be established.
Work in the “Groundwork” phase is done with a single line clipped to the central cavesson ring. It can cover circles, Shoulder fore, Shoulder in, Quarters in, Half pass, Pirouette, Renvers turns, School halt, Piaffe, Levade, and can be using both collected and a more forwards walk, trot and canter. The advantage is that the horse is working without the encumbrance of the riders weight.
“Work In Hand” is defined by using a pair of reins attached to both of the cavesson side rings, or using two pairs of reins on cavesson and a bit, walking beside the horses shoulder or thereabouts, which is termed “Work In Hand”. Work In hand work can include all the work covered in Groundwork, but as the reins are held in a more similar position to when riding the horse, this helps the horse to make the connection in the aids. The advantage is that the horse is working without the encumbrance of the riders weight.
“Long Reining” is sometimes used, using short long reins, walking closer to the horses hind quarters. Long reining of this type is only suitable once the horses have learned the correct and calm responses during the teaching of Groundwork and Work in Hand and it can be very fine and delicate work indeed , showing all the work previously taught in groundwork and Work in hand, but with the advantage that you are able to influence the hind quarters strongly, so it enhances the collection of the horse. * It is not advisable to try Long reining of this kind until the horse understands the Work in Hand and groundwork well or you may go water skiing or be kicked.
“Lunging” is taught but it is absolutely not used to tire out the horses or make them run around in circles putting miles on the clock and strain on the legs. It is used to educate the horse how to balance, be responsible and calm, moving in confident self carriage, bending the body equally on both sides, keeping balanced so not falling in or falling out or rushing on the forehand. Advanced lunging can show a high degree of collected work, including piaffe and school halt, quarters in and shoulder in.
“Ridden” work is when finally, the primary aid of the seat must be used - backed up if necessary by the already established secondary aids where necessary. The primary aid of the seat cannot be removed as an aid, so it is important for the rider to develop a balanced seat, which is not assymetric, and is absorbing the movement of the horses back correctly, so that they do not confuse, block, or damage the horses back. In ridden work, more collection is achievable using School Walk, Collected Trot, Walk, Trot and Canter Pirouette, Piaffe, Passage, Levade and the full School Halt used to educate the horse together with the test of finding how “coiled the spring” was when then alternating with collection and extended gaits.
“Liberty” work is used sometimes too, if it is felt to be appropriate and helpful. Liberty work will test the horses understanding of the trained movements, and opinion of the training and the trainer. An over dominated or fearful horse will not remain with the trainer. A horse who is unclear about aids will not make the movements correctly.
One aspect of work done in the AAoR enhances another - collection and extension, work in hand, long reining, groundwork and lunging, liberty and ridden work should all enhance and improve one another. If one of the aspects of work destroys another, then this is a sign of some educational failings.
Who is AAoR for?
AAoR is for everyone - who wants to learn how to help their horse to remain healthy and sound into old age. AAoR is for everyone who has a stiff horse, or a crooked horse, or a reactive and tense horse, or a sluggish horse, an old horse, a young horse or a damaged horse – in fact AAoR really does suit all horses, of all breeds and all shapes and sizes and ages. It very much suits the Iberian body and brain though and bears some similarities to the way that Iberians are worked in their native countries by the more experienced trainers there, but there are some fundamental differences too. AAoR can be used to improve a dressage horse, a showjumper, a Cross country horse, an endurance horse, or happy hacker horse equally well as the basic pre requisites within the training in AAoR are the same important pre requisites essential for any high quality training of riding horses used in any discipline. The skill sets that are taught first in AAoR are to become visually discerning and knowledgeable enough to be able to see the failings and successes of the horses within each movement, then time is spent learning and acquiring the necessary skills in order to be able to correct the horses various kinds of failings and after this, experience is gained, as each horse and each situation will differ slightly, so that quality tailor made training can be created for each individual, rather than relying on a one size fits all, rigidly systematic approach.
Jacquie Billington
The Academic Art of Riding by Bent Branderup is beginning to be known about a little in UK, but it is still not widely known here. Bent Branderup draws from the writings of the old masters - Pluvinel, Gueriniere and Steinbrecht, Baucher, but adds to these a modern understanding of equine bio mechanics. Bent is interested in history and ethnology and he was a student at Jerez de La Frontera at the Escuela Analuza del Arte Equestre in the days before it had acquired the prefix “Real” (meaning Royal), studying for 2 years there as a personal student of Maestro Don Javier. After this the most prominent trainers Bent visited and trained with were Salvador Sanchez, Nuno Oliveira and Egon VonNeindorff . Bents stallion Hugin had very badly damaged hocks and left front coronet joint from an accident. He had three cracked bones in three legs. From Hugin, Bent learned to make the important distinction to use dressage for the horse to heal him and not use the horse for dressage. He says that every day he learns from the horses he rides and fro his students horses. His hope is that more people can discover the greatest pleasure and Art that can exist between a human and a horse, as experienced in the centuries of European cultural heritage. He thinks you must train your body and your mind as a prerequisite to developing the skills. He says that good riding cannot be bought, it must be acquired through hard work.
AAoR Clinics at Stonehaven
The lectures from the accredited, selected trainers of the AAoR by Bent Branderup at Stonehaven are delivered either by Power Points ,which are projected onto a screen in the lecture room, or by using a flip chart, illustrating the lecture topics as they progress. The lectures cover the basics of how and why we need to help with horses natural or acquired asymmetries, which exercises will help resolve which problems, and how to identify which common problems are caused by which common asymmetries.
AAoR training will equally help a horse who is reactive and tense, or conversely it will also help a horse who is sluggish and dead to leg. A horse who is sluggish and seems lazy, a horse who rushes or is spooky and hyper alert and fearful, a horse who is running in trot or canter, or is unable to strike off correct canter lead on one or the other rein, or is unable to bend around a circle on one or both reins, a horse who rears or bucks, or falls in on circles, motorbiking around the corners, feels unstoppable, or is taking short choppy steps, a horse who moves with a high head, a bulging under-neck in fake collection, a shortened compressed neck with a dropping back not using the hind legs can all be symptoms of various kinds of asymmetry and stiffness of the horses body which can be resolved.
Fear must never play a part in any aspect of equine education, as a horse educated with fear will eventually find something they fear more than the educator themselves. So identifying the very earliest and most subtle signs of rising fear and increased stress in the horse is a very important skill to acquire, as by the time the horse feels the need to express the fear or stress obviously, it has already passed a long way over that horses threshold and the earliest signs have been missed altogether. Therefore, the first “stiffness” to overcome is that of the horses mind - and to do this, the human must work on their own stiffness of the mind first! This requires honesty to look inside and gaze at yourself, and it can be very hard to change your own long standing behavioural history and change your relationship with horses. Humans are always part of the problem - and it is highly important to remember that and remember to remain open minded to change. A horse will not initiate changes in behavioural patterns until the human behaviour patterns change first. A horse educated with fear is reactive. A horse educated without fear is responsive. This is an important distinction to make. Of course unexpected situations do arise in training and thresholds are crossed by accident, and this is perfectly normal and acceptable - just as long as it is not happening daily in the same ways and an anxious, stressed or angry horse is not the norm.
“If a horse is educated with force, then force will be required to ride it.”
The Academic Art of Riding by Bent Branderup appeals to intelligent, thoughtful and caring horse owners, people who think of their horses as being more to them than just a furry quad bike to have fun on. It offers and approach that embodies peace and calmness leading to a more harmonious relationship with your horse, helping your horse remain sound and comfortable well into old age. Bents own horses are not the crème de la crème of horses but they often continue with high school work well into their late 20s and this is the theme with his trainers and students: they are working with less than perfect horses, and have a desire to provide the best all round training for their horses benefit.
A brief over view of the sequence of work used in AAoR
The horses are trained from the ground up, with an aim for all of the aids to be transferable to ridden aids, so that once we ride, the whole system makes sense to the horse. For this reason it is not just about visual body aids, it also must be about the aids given by the whip, the hands and the reins. These secondary aids are first taught from the ground. There is an emphasis on the horses being trained systematically but with sufficient flexibility to suit each animal, and never with fear or domination. Before any training can begin, a relationship with the horse based on a calm two way trust, and the kind of respect that is not born from fear must be established.
Work in the “Groundwork” phase is done with a single line clipped to the central cavesson ring. It can cover circles, Shoulder fore, Shoulder in, Quarters in, Half pass, Pirouette, Renvers turns, School halt, Piaffe, Levade, and can be using both collected and a more forwards walk, trot and canter. The advantage is that the horse is working without the encumbrance of the riders weight.
“Work In Hand” is defined by using a pair of reins attached to both of the cavesson side rings, or using two pairs of reins on cavesson and a bit, walking beside the horses shoulder or thereabouts, which is termed “Work In Hand”. Work In hand work can include all the work covered in Groundwork, but as the reins are held in a more similar position to when riding the horse, this helps the horse to make the connection in the aids. The advantage is that the horse is working without the encumbrance of the riders weight.
“Long Reining” is sometimes used, using short long reins, walking closer to the horses hind quarters. Long reining of this type is only suitable once the horses have learned the correct and calm responses during the teaching of Groundwork and Work in Hand and it can be very fine and delicate work indeed , showing all the work previously taught in groundwork and Work in hand, but with the advantage that you are able to influence the hind quarters strongly, so it enhances the collection of the horse. * It is not advisable to try Long reining of this kind until the horse understands the Work in Hand and groundwork well or you may go water skiing or be kicked.
“Lunging” is taught but it is absolutely not used to tire out the horses or make them run around in circles putting miles on the clock and strain on the legs. It is used to educate the horse how to balance, be responsible and calm, moving in confident self carriage, bending the body equally on both sides, keeping balanced so not falling in or falling out or rushing on the forehand. Advanced lunging can show a high degree of collected work, including piaffe and school halt, quarters in and shoulder in.
“Ridden” work is when finally, the primary aid of the seat must be used - backed up if necessary by the already established secondary aids where necessary. The primary aid of the seat cannot be removed as an aid, so it is important for the rider to develop a balanced seat, which is not assymetric, and is absorbing the movement of the horses back correctly, so that they do not confuse, block, or damage the horses back. In ridden work, more collection is achievable using School Walk, Collected Trot, Walk, Trot and Canter Pirouette, Piaffe, Passage, Levade and the full School Halt used to educate the horse together with the test of finding how “coiled the spring” was when then alternating with collection and extended gaits.
“Liberty” work is used sometimes too, if it is felt to be appropriate and helpful. Liberty work will test the horses understanding of the trained movements, and opinion of the training and the trainer. An over dominated or fearful horse will not remain with the trainer. A horse who is unclear about aids will not make the movements correctly.
One aspect of work done in the AAoR enhances another - collection and extension, work in hand, long reining, groundwork and lunging, liberty and ridden work should all enhance and improve one another. If one of the aspects of work destroys another, then this is a sign of some educational failings.
Who is AAoR for?
AAoR is for everyone - who wants to learn how to help their horse to remain healthy and sound into old age. AAoR is for everyone who has a stiff horse, or a crooked horse, or a reactive and tense horse, or a sluggish horse, an old horse, a young horse or a damaged horse – in fact AAoR really does suit all horses, of all breeds and all shapes and sizes and ages. It very much suits the Iberian body and brain though and bears some similarities to the way that Iberians are worked in their native countries by the more experienced trainers there, but there are some fundamental differences too. AAoR can be used to improve a dressage horse, a showjumper, a Cross country horse, an endurance horse, or happy hacker horse equally well as the basic pre requisites within the training in AAoR are the same important pre requisites essential for any high quality training of riding horses used in any discipline. The skill sets that are taught first in AAoR are to become visually discerning and knowledgeable enough to be able to see the failings and successes of the horses within each movement, then time is spent learning and acquiring the necessary skills in order to be able to correct the horses various kinds of failings and after this, experience is gained, as each horse and each situation will differ slightly, so that quality tailor made training can be created for each individual, rather than relying on a one size fits all, rigidly systematic approach.
Jacquie Billington
