Classical dressage evolved from cavalry movements
trained for the battlefield, and has since developed into competitive dressage
seen today. Classical riding is the art of riding with, rather than against the
horse, in harmony.
Correct classical riding
only occurs when the rider has a good seat, correct and well-balanced body
position, moves with the horse's motion, and gives and times the aids
correctly.
The first work written on
what is considered to be classical dressage was Xenophon's On Horsemanship.
It is believed that Xenophon introduced the deep seat, long legs and forward
moving seat to riding, as well as emphasizing training the horse through
kindness and reward.
In the 15th century brute
force training largely came to an end while artistry in riding was once again
coming into it's own. Along with these developments came indoor riding. The Renaissance
gives rise to a new and enlightened approach to riding as a part of the general
cultivation of the arts. By the Victorian age indoor riding had become a
sophisticated art, with both rider and horse spending many years perfecting
their form. Gueriniere, Eisenberg, Andrade and Marialva write treatises on
technique and theory.
The horses were trained for
a number of airs or schools above the ground movements that enabled their
riders to escape if surrounded, or to fight more easily. These included
movements such as levade, capriole, courbette, ballotade. Movements still seen
today in dressage include the piaffe, passage, and half-pass.
Today the only remaining
large schools of classical dressage are the Spanish Riding School in Vienna,
and the French school in Saumur. There are a small number of independent
classical dressage trainers who endeavor to keep this branch of the art alive.
Modern dressage evolved
from the classical school, although it is seen in a slightly different form
than its ancestor. Competitive dressage is an international sport ranging from
beginner levels to the Olympics. Unlike classical dressage, competitive
dressage does not require the aires above ground, which most horses can not
perform well even with correct training, due to physical limitations. Instead,
competitive dressage focuses on movements such as the piaffe, passage, half-pass,
extended trot, pirouette, and tempi changes.
In theory, competitive
dressage should follow the same principles as classical dressage. However,
there has been criticism by some riders for the trend, especially at the lower
levels, for "quick fixes" and incorrect training that makes the horse
appear correct, but that is in fact neglecting the basics. These
short-cuts usually catch up to the rider as they move up the levels and need to
be correct to perform certain movements.
It is also believed by some
that competitive dressage does not reward the most correctly trained horse and
rider, especially at the lower levels. For example, a classically trained horse
would not be asked to hold his head near-vertical when he first began training,
and this would be penalized at the lower levels of competitive dressage, marked
down because the horse is not considered to be correctly on the bit. Because of
the penalizations at the lower levels, combined with the extra time--and
therefore, money--it takes to train the horse classically, many riders try to
produce a horse that looks the way a judge wants it to look, even if it is not
correct for the animal's level of training.
Due to these practices,
many riders that train their horses classically do not compete.
The purest form of
classical riding, as well as dressage, High School dressage, of Haute
Ecole, take years for both the horse and rider to master. When a horse has
finished its training, it can perform not only Grand Prix dressage movements
like collect and extended gaits, passage and piaffe, but also the "Airs
Above the Ground."
The "airs above the
ground" include the courbette, capriole, levade, and ballotade. Though
these movements were said to come from when the horse was used in war, used for
protection against the enemy, in their modern form, it is highly unlikely the
airs were used in actual battle, as all but the Capriole expose the horse's
sensitive underbelly to the weapons of foot soldiers.
The courbette is a
movement where the horse balances on its hindlegs and jumps, keeping its
forelegs off the ground, thus it "hops" on its hindlegs.
The capriole is a
movement where the horse leaps into the air and pulls his forelegs in towards
his chest at the height of elevation, while kicking out with his hindlegs.
The levade is a
movement where the horse is balanced on its haunches at a 45 degree angle from
the ground. It requires great control and balance, and is very strenuous.
There are two main breeds
that are most well known for their abilities for airs above ground: the Lipizzaner
and the Andalusian. Other breeds that are known for their abilities in High
School dressage include the Friesian and Lusitano.
The Spanish Riding School
in Vienna, as well as the Cadre Noir from the French Riding School in Saumur,
still practice and teach Haute Ecole. The Spanish Riding School uses strictly
Lipizzaner stallions for their work.
Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dressage&action=history
http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html