Training with Music – part 2
Aug 20th, 2009 by Carolyn Resnick Method
The other day I was telling you about how I started to use music to train my horses and so I wanted to tell you a little more about my experiences.
When I trained to music, I found that the horses responded more quickly to my spontaneous direction. We became united as a team beyond anything I had experienced before. It caused me to be more careful not to ask anything of the horse that would cause the loss of rhythm or negatively impact the horse’s ability to perform. Music made me a more tactful rider. My spontaneous cues caused the horses to focus on performing at a moment’s notice, which created a brilliance in their steps. It was a miraculous discovery. After that, I developed a training program in four stages.
In the beginning, when I first started a horse to music, I chose classical or any music without a beat so the horse could focus on even cadence and develop an evenness and smoothness of the gait. This way, he could easily attach to the flow of the music. After the horse responded naturally to what he was listening to, the next step was to pick music with an obvious beat. The beat woke up the horse to the idea that the beat was directing his performance. Because the horse had learned to flow with the musical already, he had an ability to make the changes of expression so that he could stay connected. After a short time, he became totally aware that the music was directing both of us. The horse was able to quickly learn to forecast what I was asking by listening to the music. Similar to how horses will respond in the show arena by taking a cue from the click of the loudspeaker or by listening to the announcer and performing what he or she requests.
The developed ability of the horse guided me to the third stage of his training, where I allowed the horse a significant say in what we performed together. I found that by this stage of his training, he was more than willing to offer original behaviors. Once he had learned these 3 stages, the last stage was to combine all three elements in his training session: Warming him up to classical music, usually Mozart for the mind, then using a piece of music that had a beat. Once he was responsive to my direction, I moved on to allowing the horse more freedom to help in creating the choreography we used.
It’s a fun way to train a horse and can be applied to the training of any of events you wish to pursue. Showing doesn’t have to be just about competition. After you have achieved this relationship, showing becomes an expression of movements only and you will discover a championship performance in the unbridled spirit that is unexplainable
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Carolyn, You sure know how to have fun and teach at the same time. I love your idea of giving people treats of their choice when they sat down in the chairs! I know if I played that game and knew I was going to get a cookie of my choice when I did what you asked, for sure I would. I get so much grief rom people for giving my horse treats – but a couple years after I got him I realized how food/reward motivated he really was, so I give treats for reward. I have never had a problem with him taking the treat from me, he is the most gentle horse -although people will tell you it makes a nippy horse. I think nothing could be further from the truth though. I think lots of people do not believe in reward and being easy on their horses is more the case.
Hi Carloyn,
I apologize for not responding enough to your beautiful blogs. Sometimes I am just afraid I will come across as a geyser of praise for what you are doing for all of us. Whenever your e-mails appear in my inbox I have to put them in a special folder till my brain is ready to receive the information. Your revelations always expand my reality and really require me to focus and to be present. (ie. not thinking about all the burdock growing in my pastures, how the garden needs weeding, hanging the clothes on the line…etc. Ha…all good stuff, I know.) The knowledge you share with us is such a gift…and you do it in such a generous way. Heart & soul.
PS. Who knew pink champagne could taste so good with heuvos!
With Love,
Meredith
This sentence beats with the rhythm of my heart. Thank you Carolyn.
“After you have achieved this relationship, showing becomes an expression of movements only and you will discover a championship performance in the unbridled spirit that is unexplainable”
Hi! Love your methods-have all your info. How is this for smart- A 6yo was doing an obstacle course aboard my Walker, and after her 3rd attempt at taking a hula hoop off of a jump standard, riding 30 ft and tossing the hoop over a traffic cone without success, Sterling reached around, took the hoop in his mouth, walked the 30 ft and put the hoop over the cone! I’m glad there were witnesses!This is a horse that is allowed to have opinions and express himself, and we have a true connection. And he is wonderful with kids! Any of your grads in New England? Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Barb
Hi Carolyn,
thank you so much for that very interesting reply, I long to join your classes and do just that – experience it for myself,
kind regards
Tammy
Dear Tammy,
I use to use music by Mozart to start my 3 day clinics Dances with Horses. Then I would move into drum music with a simple beat.
It set the mood for people and horses to easyly to move together as a herd.
Years ago people were less intrested in using treats for training a horse. So to help them understand the important of music and treats I would start my clinics with all the people in the arena dancing to drum music like a horse moving in nature in a herd with out the horses first to se the atomsphere. All you really had to do was listen to the music and walk in rythem to the drums. The class had been instructed at a certain point that when I clapped my hands they were to form a single line behind someone of their choice.
What happens is that at first it looks like chaos. Then a free from pattern forms and then the free from pattern turns into a perfect circle. At this point I could start walking out of the circle and that would put me leading the class. I would then lead the class that was now in a single line to their chairs. I would gester to each on to sit down in and empty chair and hand them a cookie of their choice. After this people got the idea of how imporntat music, leadership and treats are in a training program can be when they got to expericance it for themselves.
Hi Carolyn,
In 1991 I used a CD that I have searched for ever since to begin a 5 yo Arab Stallion the CD was Mozart and it was called Love Themes – it had an African type sunset on the cover. It was that lovely big soft rolling expansive kind of music. Reading your post I realise how this act of playing music must have helped me to bring him on. I used to say at the time he was a remarkable young horse and flowed so magnificently with such cadence as I had not experienced before. Now I realise that the intuitive use of that particular CD was a massive gift. This young horse went on to win his first outing – a breed championship hands down.
It makes me wonder if using Beethoven at the right time for a horse that has been repressed would aide in bringing out the emotions.
As music has such a profound effect on horses one could surely pick music that is all wrong for the moment. My thought is: would using a beat first off produce a horse with a strong or maybe even choppy stride? With your background in ballet I am pretty sure you would have naturally avoided that though – would you perhaps share some of the first peices of music that you usually choose? Kind regards Tammy
I love the idea! And it does make sense. I wish I lived in California. I would looovvee to learn more with a teacher like Carolyn. Oh well, I will use my imagination and have fun!
Thanks for this post. I love it!
Sounds like fun! Have you ever tried rhythm beads?