Meet Sandra's New Equine Partner...Nico the Friesian!

Photo of Nico taken by his owner Susan McClafferty of Mareish Media. Click here to see more photos on Instagram.

I am BEYOND excited to announce a new horse in my life. Meet Cobus Fan De Hill, also known as ‘Nico’. He is a seven year old, 17 hand Friesian gelding sired by Alwin 469 x Doaitsen 420. My talented, creative friend Susan McCLafferty of Mareish Media purchased him to sponsor my ongoing creative ventures. She is an incredible horsewoman and I am honored that she helped me find the horse of my dreams.

Nico was imported when he was four years old from the Netherlands and has been trained in dressage by Christine Johnston at Iron Horse Farm. She did a fabulous job with him, starting him slow and building a solid foundation. He has shown through Second Level dressage and I look forward to bringing him up through the levels. Can you tell I am in love already?

Please follow Nico the Friesian on Instagram! Click here!

Nico is a very special horse, he has a kind, soulful eye and he is incredibly smart and aware of his surroundings. He is a perfect gentleman and he wants to do a good job. He is sensitive but also calm in nature. I am so excited for our future together and I am hoping that we will create some unique performances to inspire others!

After losing my heart horse Douwe over three years ago I wasn’t sure that I would want another Friesian. I LOVE my boy Rovandio but he is 22 years old this year and starting to slow down in his later years. The stars have aligned and I feel that Nico was brought into my life at just the right time and now I have the knowledge to begin again on a new journey. Please follow Nico on Instagram to stay updated on our journey together.

The Best Holiday Gift ever! Owner Susan Mcclafferty hands off Nico the Friesian to trainer Sandra Beaulieu. Click here to Follow Nico on Instagram.

Creative Centerlines for your Dressage Musical Freestyle

Ready to make a great first impression for your musical freestyle? Use your entrance to help tell a story, just like the opening of a movie or the beginning of song, you are setting the mood and telling the judge what to expect from your freestyle. There are many ways you can capture the attention of your judge and the audience, even at the lower levels.

Douwe and Sandra enter for their First Level Musical Freestyle. Photo taken by Spotted Vision Photography.

Use Lyrics

Lyrics have grown in popularity for musical freestyles. They are allowed but you need to make sure that you choose songs that enhance your routine rather than take away from the overall flow.

Using fun openers to a song or a catchy jingle can set the tone for your entire freestyle and put a smile on everyone’s face. Recently, I designed a freestyle where we used the opening of “I Feel Good” with James Brown. It is iconic and recognizable to every person that might be in that audience, especially to the judge. The rest of the freestyle included songs from the same genre and rider Linda Brock received a lot of compliments.

For my client Carolena we used the song “Lollipop” for her entrance. She did her halt, salute perfectly to the “pop” sound that everyone would recognize. She is an adorable young rider (definitely has the cute factor with her small horse!) performing a Training Level freestyle. Her freestyle followed the same genre with songs like “Sandman” and “ Tweedle Dee”.

Think of lines from a popular movie like “Bond...James Bond” or the prologue from “Beauty and the Beast”. Broadway musicals also have plenty of one liners that can work for an entrance such as “He’s here the Phantom of the Opera!”.

The beauty of using lyrics for a musical freestyle is that the music doesn’t necessarily have to match the beats of your horse’s stride. It would be great if it did but overall you are using the entrance to make an impression and set the stage, so if the beats aren’t perfect but the lyrics are I say go ahead and try it!

Sandra and Rovandio showing a Second Level Freestyle. Photo credit Spotted Vision Photography.

Use Transitions

Something that I rarely see are transitions such as walk to trot, trot to canter, or walk to canter. At the lower levels there are limited options for centerlines, if you can use entrance music that has a clear transition that can help enhance your artistic scores and demonstrate technical skill the judge.

I rode a Third Level freestyle with my horse Rovandio many years ago and our violin music started slow and then added a distinct trot beat. I cued the music, began at the walk and then transitioned to the trot when the music changed.

Only try this if your horse is really consistent in upward transitions! If they tend to brace or come above the bit I wouldn’t risk it, just stay in your preferred gait.

Add a Lengthening/Extension

Impress the judge with a dramatic extended trot down the centerline! If your horse has a reliable and high-quality medium/extended trot this can be a really good option. Also using medium/extended canter can really ‘WoW’ the judges and set the stage for a powerful ride.

This entrance works well when you have are going all the way down the centerline to your first halt. Some riders prefer to halt around L or G to set up for their first movement closer to the judge.

Sandra used Outlander music for her Friesian gelding Douwe. Photo credit Spotted Vision Photography.

Add Sound Bites

You can add a little more sparkly and pizzazz with your opening salute by accenting with additional sound bites. This could sound like a gong, a magical chime, a drumroll, or perhaps the sound of people clapping. You can get creative and add sounds that will go along with your entrance music and the overall theme of the freestyle. Having a definite sound or accent for your salute elevates your freestyle and shows that you pay attention to detail.

You can search for sound bites on websites like www.audiojungle.net where you can purchase short music clips and search by instrument and genre. Use keywords like “Intro” to search through hundreds of short clips that people use for music videos, movies, and promo videos. They are generally short and already fade in/out so they would be very easy to incorporate in the editing process.

Additional Ideas

• I personally like the sound of an orchestra warming up if you are using classical music

• Sound clip from a band playing live…sometimes they will address the audience to get everyone fired up

• Drumroll that you hear at the start of a movie

• Record your own voice over your entrance movie to create something unique and special

• Sound clip from a motivational speech

Have Fun!

No matter what you decide, I hope you have fun in the process! Creating a musical freestyle is a rewarding process that takes patience, determination, and creativity. Let me know in the comments below what you used for your musical freestyle entrance I would love to know. You can also email me with questions/comments to beginthedance@gmail.com.

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The Ultimate Guide to Riding, Training, and Competing to Music - Signed by Author

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Related Articles

Sandra Beaulieu & Friesian Douwe - "Outlander"-Inspired First Level Musical Freestyle

We dance for laughter,
we dance for tears,
we dance for madness,
we dance for fears,
we dance for hopes,
we dance for screams,
we are the dancers,
we create the dreams.
                  -Albert Einstein

After a long hiatus from the dressage competition arena, I decided it would be fun to work on my USDF Freestyle Bronze Bar with Douwe and Rovandio. To earn this award, the rider needs two freestyle scores (above 65%) at First level, two scores at Second level, and two scores at Third level from recognized shows. Douwe earned both of our First Level scores and Rovandio earned both of our Second Level scores in one weekend! I am so proud of them, they seemed to enjoy themselves and I did too! If you watch the TV series Outlander you will recognize the music, the tempo and drama of the music really go with Douwe's stride. Enjoy!

Are you inspired to start working on your First Level musical freestyle?

FIRST LEVEL Choreography Ebook for Dressage Musical Freestyle

$29.00

My "how-to" e-book will take you through the creation process of your very own freestyle. 

• 10 Fully Choreographed Test Patterns! Just Add Music!

• 37 pages of choreography!  

• 7 Online Resources to help you find freestyle music.

• Creative freestyle questionnaire to help get your creative juices flowing!

• Freestyle checklist to help you stay on track.

• Blank arena diagram pages for you to take notes and draw your own choreography.

• Rules to remember, arena & sound requirements, copyright laws and more!

I also offer CUSTOM FREESTYLE design and FREESTYLE WORKSHOPS. Click here to learn more. 

"Outlander" Inspired Routine - Bitless, Bridleless, and at Liberty

I love watching the Outlander TV series and adore the soundtrack. The songs are dramatic, beautiful, and have a light-hearted quality that fits Douwe's personality really well. Douwe injured his knee a month before this event and I barely had a chance to ride him the week of the show. I brought Rovandio with us as a backup and ended up performing both of them and they felt great. I tend to be more creative on a deadline so I found myself putting together a brand new routine just days before the show, editing the music and pulling together a costume from my collection. I am so happy with how the routine turned out and Douwe really enjoyed himself. We even popped in a few tempi changes even though we haven't practiced those in months! The music gives me goosebumps to ride to and I am looking forward to the next time I can perform this routine. 

Article in "the Friesian" Magazine- My Top 7 Training Struggles with my Friesian Horse Douwe

I wrote this article for "the Friesian" magazine that is created by the Friesian Horse Association of North America (FHANA). They send out a quarterly magazine to their members and this was included in their January/February issue (2015). They were very gracious to let me share the article on my blog. I want to send out a big THANK YOU to the editor Laurie Bell for creating such a beautiful article layout with all the photos. This article is under copyright of FHANA and cannot be shared without their permission. There is a list of resources and links that I mention in the article located at the bottom of the post.

Please visit their website if you want more information about the Friesian Breed and their organization: http://www.fhana.com/

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Included in this article:
Dr. Cook Bitless Bridle: http://www.bitlessbridle.com/
Falcyyr Film (Ahura Diliiza): https://www.facebook.com/falcyyr
Custom Tack Created by Lisa Oberman: http://elsuenoespanol.com/store/
Isaac Royal Academy of Equestrian Arts (Carolyn Rose): https://www.facebook.com/pages/Isaac-Royal-Training-Center-of-Classical-Dressage/321529202925
Heidi Herriot Trick Training: http://www.heidiherriott.com/
Lydia Rose Bellydance: https://www.facebook.com/LydiaRoseBellyDance?ref=br_tf
Custom Breeches Worn in Falcyyr made by Aanstadt-Das: https://www.facebook.com/aanstadtdasbreeches
Safe Haven Farm in Durham, ME: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Safe-Haven-Farm/272054486150539