Anja Beran made her first trip to the U.S. to teach students in classical dressage, and no one was disappointed. Having published one of the best books on classical gymnastic training in many, many years, Anja also excels at kind, focused and thoughtful teaching. Above all she is focused on the horses, and she helps each rider understand how to better faciliate more balance and straightness through a variety of gymnastic exercises. Watching each lesson unfold through gentle, calm lateral work was similar to watching a painter at work. Each layer of tension and stiffness in the horse was replaced with relaxation and mobilization of the joints and muscles. Anja has a keen eye for how each horse uses itself in an uneven balance, and she swiftly places the horse into a series of exercises to encourage equal weight distriubution on all four legs.

Balance, straightness and joint mobilization

Each horse in the clinic presented a different imbalance issue which Anja brought to our awareness. Then we witnessed how Anja worked with the rider and horse to resolve the imbalance. A number of horses would continually weight one foreleg over the other. At one point Anja stopped and said, " See, this is the leg you will have the problem with first. He is always putting weight on it. Then you will have a little problem that becomes a big problem down the road". Then she continued to work with the horse slowly and calmly at the walk in shoulder-in on the circle, then to halt on the circle and shoulder-in, then back to shoulder-in on the circle. Each time she asked the horse ( and rider) to pick up his weighted shoulder and leg and engage the hind legs underneath more to rebalance him off the forehand. By the end of five minutes of this work he was halting completely square with weight evenly distributed.

Anja encouraged all the riders to calm their walk and trot to keep their horses from running onto the forehand. She repeatedly pointed out that a calm, slow walk and trot help flex the joints, and enable the horse to pick up its legs rather than pushing forward with stiffness in the joints. It was in this calm walk and trot that many of the exercises of lateral balance were given to the horse and rider teams. Anja quickly and honestly worked with each rider's balance issues in the saddle, and by doing so the horse immediately took on better balance. The riders in the clinic were ready and very able to take instruction, and it was a pleasure to see how quiet and calm each rider was for their horse. The atmosphere at this clinc was very supportive and friendly, as well as focused and incredibly educational. Anja was friendly, funny, available for questions and just generally a joy to listen to and watch.

Straightness was an issue for almost every horse in the clinic, as it is for just about all horses. "No problem", Anja would say, and then she put the horse in counter-flexion exercises to straighten an over flexed neck or to help a horse "sit" more on its haunch. Riders were encouraged to "give rein" often and to be able to use their legs without their hands and hands without their legs. Often Anja repeated herself, as trainers have to, and encouraged the riders to lower their hands. "Don't fall on the neck, sit more" and "allow your horse to get big in the front" were encouraging comments made throughout the clinic. She continually helped riders wo were falling forward with their upper bodies as well as encouraged other riders to give more rein and let their horse's head and neck lengthen. Anja wanted the riders to establish a light contact so " the horse can speak to you and chew with his mouth lightly". She also helped rides follow their horse's movement with their seat and sit more quietly in the saddle. " Let him move you, don't push with your seat" was a comment she would frequently make.

Classical is natural

Tuesday evening, after a wonderful catered dinner, Anja gave a talk and piaffe demonstration. She spoke beautifully about how the classical art comes from the nature of the horse and the natural balance of the horse. She encouraged people to remember to read the old classical masters of Xenophon, de la Gueriniere, Baucher and others, to recall and reaffirm what the classical art of dressage has been for hundreds of years. " Dressage is not a new thing, a modern thing, it is very very old" she insisted. " It is not something for some special type of horse or for one type of riding. It is necessary training for all horses in order for them to go straight, be balanced and stay off their forehand. Any horse who is to carry a rider needs dressage training to prepare the back". She spoke eloquently and with passion about how the training of the horse must not ever intefere with, rather build up the horse's natural abilities. She referred to some of the ways in which incorrect training deteriorates the natural gaits, and then she spent some time explaining how horses are brought along at her stable. "Dressage is for the horse, but the horse is not made for dressage. You must go slowly and build the horse up gymnastically with alot of relaxation".

Anja Beran is a young and brilliant teacher, trainer and rider. I am very thankful that those of us who love the classical art of riding have her as an example and inspiration for the training and riding of the horse.