Getting ready for this coming show season!!!
So how do you do it?
Do you start with the music or the movements, or both?
So far, I’ve checked the technical requirements, what I’m allowed and forbidden, and which movements give the most points!
Also, what goes on with copyrights/legal aspect of using songs? (Let’s say if I later want to post it on YTube)
[QUOTE=alibi_18;7530681]
Getting ready for this coming show season!!!
So how do you do it?
Do you start with the music or the movements, or both?
So far, I’ve checked the technical requirements, what I’m allowed and forbidden, and which movements give the most points!
Also, what goes on with copyrights/legal aspect of using songs? (Let’s say if I later want to post it on YTube)[/QUOTE]
We just had a really awesome freestyle clinic at our barn this past weekend with Cynthia Collins of LunaTunes. She has a lot of good information on her website at http://www.lunatunesfreestyles.com which you might find helpful.
We started by choosing the music for each gait; Cynthia had us ride around at WTC while she played different songs and you could really tell when one particular piece of music sparked a response in the horse. (Basically, the horse picks the music.)
Once the music was selected, Cynthia designed the choreography, based on the horse’s (and rider’s) strengths and weaknesses. For example, a horse that doesn’t have a great medium might show that movement on a short diagonal, rather than on a longer one.) She was amazingly good at figuring out how to design a pattern that set the horse up for whatever was coming next, so that it was easy to get from one movement to the next.
Cynthia mentioned that while you are covered to play the music at (rated) shows, YouTube is different (and she said they have been cracking down on unlicensed uses.)
Hmmm. Tried to delete my duplicate post and both disappeared! Sigh…
Anyway - to recap:
We had a wonderful freestyle clinic this past weekend with Cynthia Collins of LunaTunes. She has some great information on her website: http://www.lunatunesfreestyles.com
The first day, we essentially rode WTC while Cynthia played different songs, and chose the music that the horse went best to. (The horse basically picks the music!)
The second day, Cynthia worked with us to create the choreography, based on the horse and rider’s specific strengths and weaknesses. For example, a horse whose weakness was the mediums might do those on a short diagonal. Cynthia was really brilliant at setting up the pattern so that the movements really flowed well and were easy to get into and out of. I highly recommend her.
I’ve only done a couple of very low level ones, but I kind of started with the type of music I wanted to use. I belong to a group who frequently does musical freestyle and the trainer had a clinic where we rode to a metronome and she gave us our beats per minute for each gait. Many songs can be looked up by beats per minute. We also had a clinic with a computer geek who helped us learn to use a music editing program. It was fun to learn how to splice songs together or slightly alter the speed.
Here’s a video showing the entire process of making Jackie Brooks’ new freestyle.
Tamara is wonderful and super talented.
Carl Hester has a great guide on how to create freestyle in his Down to Earth Dressage book! At least the basics, I think.
Order this book. Read. You will now have everything you need to know about creating a freestyle.
And when you are ready to find music, you may wish to take a look at my free website music data base: www.equimusic.com
Thanks Lucassb; there are good examples on her website.
More books to read…Thanks but no thanks! LoL I’m in my finals…already tooo much to read. But yes, I will look for these books after!
@Mike : but once I know which music I want, where do I actually get it? Let’s say I want the instrumental version of a song; Do I hack it somewhere? Do I buy it? Do I ask someone to record it for me?
I’m listening to lots of instrumental songs on youtube and some (most) are just…not good… 
Technically speaking, what programs do people use? I have Adobe Soundbooth but usually did all of my editing directly in Premiere or After effect. Is there any ‘‘free’’ program I could download?
[QUOTE=alibi_18;7532836]
Thanks Lucassb; there are good examples on her website.
More books to read…Thanks but no thanks! LoL I’m in my finals…already tooo much to read. But yes, I will look for these books after!
@Mike : but once I know which music I want, where do I actually get it? Let’s say I want the instrumental version of a song; Do I hack it somewhere? Do I buy it? Do I ask someone to record it for me?
I’m listening to lots of instrumental songs on youtube and some (most) are just…not good…
Technically speaking, what programs do people use? I have Adobe Soundbooth but usually did all of my editing directly in Premiere or After effect. Is there any ‘‘free’’ program I could download?[/QUOTE]
You’re very welcome!
I chose songs that I bought from iTunes to use when I was selecting music; I gave those to Cynthia to play while I rode, in addition to the thousands of songs she had available in her own database.
Can’t help you much with the editing tools. Cynthia will do the actual editing and composition for my freestyle and then send us the file. You might want to reach out to her for ideas; she was very approachable and has tons of experience.
As an aside, her clinic was surprisingly affordable, and she credited us with the cost toward the freestyle itself, making the process pretty cost effective. I had heard about professional freestyles costing thousands of dollars, so I was pleasantly surprised to learn how affordable hers were!!
First, work with someone who knows how to do this 
You get your horse going really well in a lesson and have someone video. All three gaits, both directions.
Calculate your bpm. Start with one gait (I generally do canter, but certainly trot would work). Watch video while playing music that has the correct bpm. Get like 5 options and ride to it with your trainer.
Once you pick that music, you match the next gait and find complimentary music. Then do the walk.
Compose the music then choreograph to the music.
Important note - it’s more important that you pick music that compliments your horse than music that is your personal favorite. At the lower levels you want music that is “friendly”, not overly serious.
Don’t worry Exploding pony, I have a really knowledgeable trainer, but she has her freestyles done professionnaly…so she cannot really help in the editing department or laws regarding musics.
We are in the process of building a routine that will showcase our strongest skills, while including as much ‘‘x2’’ movements as we can!
I’ve scribed a lot, and have heard a lot of comments from judges like ‘‘here is another circle again’’, the typical ‘‘what was that exactly?’’, usually followed by the dreadfull ‘‘is one require movement missing?’’… But what’s have came up with so far is just a little too complicated for my trainer’s taste.
I’m pretty knowledgeable in the ‘‘music’’ department; have played piano/flute/saxophone (classical & jazz improv), so I know about beats, and I have a DJ friend to help me out but I want to do it myself!!!
@Lucassb : I looked at her pricelist and you are right, she isn’t expensive at all, if one want to put some effort to it. I think it would really be too expensive to have her come down here for a clinic (Québec) but if I get in too much trouble, I might send her an email/video for her professional opinion.
You see, I would have thought the opposite; do the choreography first and then mix the music to it.
[QUOTE=exploding pony;7533098]
Compose the music then choreograph to the music.[/QUOTE]
Important note - it’s more important that you pick music that compliments your horse than music that is your personal favorite. At the lower levels you want music that is “friendly”, not overly serious.
It is for a level 2 freestyle and ‘‘friendly’’ would really not fit my mare’s personnality… LoL.
But I understand what you mean as I would rather have some quiet old jazz/blues music but that would probably put the judges and my mare to sleep…I don’t want to scare the judges with too weird/dark sounds either.
My mare put up a lot of muscles this year and she is strong so I was thinking about more electronic beats/dance musics. Beyoncé/Pon de Floor type of strong upbeat.
She’s hilarious too…with a big behind so Major Lazer’s Bubble Btt would fit her perfectly! LoL. DJ Snake’s ‘‘Turn down for what’’ could also fit. Capital Cities ‘‘Safe n’ Sound’’ would be a little more joyfull.
I have asked a few friends who know my mare to give me their ideas on songs.
If anyone have music suggestions… 
While I would probably invest in professional help if I was showing at rated shows, for local schooling shows I am perfectly comfortable editing my own music. You can use Garageband or a program for Windows machines called Audacity.
A Beyoncé tune would be my choice for a mare like her - That would be just killer!!
Oh and don’t forget to look good too - don’t you just love this outfit on H. Blitz?
http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/path-paragon-clear
Post a vid when all is said and done - we’d really love to see you!
Thanks Cmdrcltr! Never heard of Audacity so I will take a look later tonight.
BelgianWBluver: Of course I will post the video when it is all done (and if I get good scores for it!).
And I love Heather Blitz!!! My tack is brown as well as my jacket and helmet!
Here is a picture of me last summer at my first attempt in dressage with this mare.2d level got around 60% and really wasn’t prepared much because I had been in the jumper ring all summer!
[QUOTE=alibi_18;7534796]
…
Here is a picture of me last summer at my first attempt in dressage with this mare.2d level got around 60% and really wasn’t prepared much because I had been in the jumper ring all summer![/QUOTE]
Beyoncé, definitely :yes:
I remember when I did my first FS and thought exactly the same, that you put together the choreography and then mix the music to it. But then it ends up all chopped up.
So what you want to do is find music that has enough going on, but not too much, so that you can do all of the movements (ie big parts for mediums, quieter music for the SI etc).
One really good tip my trainer had me do last week in my lesson - when you have music that you think works really well, you ride to it, turn it off for like 30 seconds, then turn it back on while she was watching.
If the horse looks better while the music is playing, you found your music. If the horse looks better when the music isn’t playing, keep searching.
Second level is still pretty basic for a FS. I think people generally overwhelm their horse with dramatic music at the lower levels but to each their own.
Oh one more tip - it’s good not to accidentally use the music that some famous rider is using
Judges get familiar with the top freestyles and you don’t want to be compared to someone else who happens to be a national rider!
That’s the music editing software I used-Audacity. It was pretty easy to use.
Well, Carl Hester explained the kür bit in a few pages So not so much reading. And it is a good book overall.
I do the choreography first. The absolutely best possible choreography to allow my horse the highest movement scores and choreography score. Then I find music that fits. It’s not choppy because I don’t cut up music just to make it fit. I find music that has natural transitions. You can also edit two songs together at a natural transition in each song at it will sound like they might be the same song. I spend on average 40-50 hours editing to get it to that point, but I almost always have people coming up to me and asking who did my freestyle for me. My most recent freestyle, the trot music had 4 songs in it but it fits so well, everyone is shocked to hear that. Then my walk and canter combined is only 1 song (but about 7 sections of it moved around to fit the choreography).
Judges don’t like when your medium trot goes from C to MXK, then halfway in to the corner, “just because it fits the music that we made before seeing how long it takes to trot a diagonal.” While, it’s a freestyle, many judges still like you to use letters, because it is clarity in the choreography. The choreography needs to look planned and polished, not made to fit for scores of 73 and above.
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
