There are so many things going on at the minute to do with horses that I can't decide what to write and when to write it! I never thought that I would get to having 100 posts on my blog in less than a year, I'm not very good at sticking to things and love writing my blog for you all to read and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it. For my first post of today cause you never know if I get bored later I might write about something else.
On Sunday after the work in hand it was time to watch the 'Pas de Deux' this is where two matching stallions (personality wise) ride in total symmetry and harmony and they are the centre piece of this performance. The riders position themselves so that they are mirroring the other horse and what one rider does at one end of the school the other does at the other end of the school. They move in strict time to the music and use perfect lines. The two riders then demonstrate all the movements of the classical school (this includes leg-yielding, shoulder in, pirouettes).
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| Spanish Riding School performing the 'pas de deux' at the Riding School in Vienna. |
The next part was something that was truly fascinating it showed collection and grace, this was performed by Rider H. Seiberl and the horse was called Siglavy Theodora 1, this is one of the most prestigious and well known horses at the school. This part was called 'On the long rein' this is where the rider walks behind the horse on a long rein. guiding and supporting him using only the long reins and a slight touch of the whip.
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| Spanish Riding School - Rider H. Seiberl and Horse - Siglavy Theodora 1 performing 'On the Long Rein' |
All the steps and movements of the high school part 2 is performed by one rider, the movements they do are done by only holding the reins with one hand the other hand holds a piece of Birchwood that is to represent a sword that would have been used when the horses were used as war horses. These movements are fluid and controlled and show how elegant the horse truly is.
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| Spanish Riding School - All the steps and movements of the high school, Part 2. The bay horse in this picture IS a Lipizzaner, there s only one bay horse in the school and this shows good luck! |
The next part is the part that the riding school is most well known for and it is something that is truly fantastic to watch and something that I think any horse lover should see at least once in their lives. This part was the 'Schools Above the Ground'. This section involves complete trust because the rider performs the entire movement without stirrups. The schools above the ground is the highlight of the show. Here we get shown those figures were the horses raises themselves above the ground either using their forelegs or both the forelegs and hindquarters. The horses and riders perform the Courbette, The caproile and The Levade.
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| Spanish Riding School - caproile |
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| Courbette |
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| Levade |
Finally it was time to watch the school quadrille, this was the last part of the spanish riding school and something that i love to watch actually I enjoyed watching all of it. This was performed by all of the eight riders. The challenge is the fact that this movement is performed with 8 riders in the school at once. The horses show the various movements of classical dressage on short lines in a unique choreography and in perfect harmony. This is the longest part of the performance and is extremely demanding for both horse and rider and it demands a lot of concentration.
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| Spanish Riding School of Vienna on their home ground, this is the end to their performance and is the end of the School Quadrille. |
Until Next Time
A Girl With A Dream.
Those Spanish horses are amazing arent they!! :)
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