Classical Dressage Principles – The Horse Magazine

What is classical dressage? Do we need it??

November 1st, 2026
Robert Dover asks just what are the 'classical principles' and do we need them today? Christopher Hector delves back in history to find what those masters of the past have to offer. Warning this is a very long and serious article... Read Article 2 Comments »

In Whose Hands?

October 6th, 2023
Paul Belasik looks at today's culture of dressage, and worries that the 'win at all costs' mentality is taking over. He finds the real values of dressage in the timeless writings of the great French écuyer, Antoine de Pluvinel... Read Article 7 Comments »

The most influential Dressage Master of them all! Steinbrecht

November 11th, 2022
It was Steinbrecht who turned dressage around, replacing the emphasis on artificial complicated moves, with the clear message that the purpose of dressage was to work with the horse... Read Article Comments Off

Jean Bemelmans – Understanding your horse

October 19th, 2021
Jean Bemelmans, Master Trainer, tells us: As a trainer you cannot look at the technique ONLY, first you have to look in the eyes of your horse, you have to ask, what does this horse want? Does he want more training? Does he want less training? Is he happy? Read Article Comments Off

Collection: The Fourth Building Block of Classical Dressage

November 3rd, 2020
And now the fourth building block of dressage, as outlined by Paul Belasik - COLLECTION Read Article 1 Comment »

Balance: The Third Building Block of Classical Dressage

November 1st, 2020
The third of Paul Belasik's buidling blocks of dressage - BALANCE Read Article 1 Comment »

The Classical Tradition – Part 3 – The Masters of the Nineteenth Century

October 16th, 2019
In this third article of the series, we look at the development of the so-called 'classical' principles in the nineteenth century... Read Article 2 Comments »

The Classical Tradition, the Training Scale and Dressage Today

October 11th, 2019
This is the final in a four part series of articles that looks at the development of the principles of dressage training from the Greeks, through the Middle Ages and into the present. This article discusses the emergence of the German Training Scale and in a postscript considers the state of the art in 2019... Read Article 11 Comments »

Stefan Wolff and the Klaus Balkenhol legacy…

November 9th, 2018
Dressage trainer, Stefan Wolff talks about how he became a trainer - and his time with master trainer, Klaus Balkenhol. Read Article Comments Off