Does anyone else feel the same about BBC's coverage of the Dressage

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Pascal96

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While it is good that they have acknowledged that there are enough of us interested in watching Dressage, when it is the Kur they need to remember that we need to hear the music as well as watch as they are both part of the whole, and to ask their commentators not to speak during the test.
In fact it was mentioned that they knew we wanted to hear the music and then proceeded to talk through the tests! Also the music was kept in the background and even when they were not speaking it wasn't loud enough. I know my hearing isn't as good as it was but I had to have the sound up really loud to hear it properly.
I did find the comments of particularly Carl Hester and Judy Harvey really interesting and informative but would have preferred them in the intervals between the tests.
I have just watched Tortilas' test on You Tube where it is played without commentary and it was great to be able to just watch, listen and admire!
 
I actually thought the commentary was really good - very interesting and a great insight from different points of view. Judy Harvey gave some good tips with her 'judge's hat' on and Carl is always excellent to listen to.
Come on it's much better than the rubbish commentary that SJ fans have to suffer on TV!
I suppose as it's digital the ideal solution would be to be able to choose if you hear commentary or not!
 
Can't say I agree at all. I thought there was just the right balance of commentary - there needs to be some to help people who don't understand dressage/aren't that horsie understand and appreciate it.

I know the BBC get a lot of stick on here for some of their equestrian coverage (and occasionally I agree), but I do think sometimes we ought to be grateful for the coverage we get and I for one were thrilled that the BBC have organised so much coverage of Olympia this year and particularly the Kur and I would hate to see them not do it again because people are being too picky and critical. Everyone on here is always so keen to email the BBC when they get the coverage wrong, but how many of us ever thank them when they do show us equestrian stuff!
 
No, it needs the commentry.

Non horsey people can try to understand it then.

one minute peopple moan cos they never show equestrian sports, then when they do people moan again. idk eh.
 
I partly agree, as it can be rather annoying to only be able to hear the commentators all the way through especially the in the Kur. However I felt that the commentary was brilliant and would much prefer to here opinions on the movements as they are performed so I can understand what they are looking at and commenting on rather than 15 minutes later when I can't remember which half pass they are commenting on saying the horse was tense or had quarter trailing etc. I think doing it as the horse is performing will also help less horsey/dressage people understand.
I think we should be more grateful for the amount of Olympia coverage we are given.
 
i actually really liked the commentary- Carl Hester was informative and entertaining.

i don't like it when they wittle on about nothing and everything but i thought it was really nice to hear Carl's opinions on how horses were doing in certain movements.

you could hear the music well enough behind the commentary anyway and i think they got the balance right.
 
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I have just watched Tortilas' test on You Tube where it is played without commentary and it was great to be able to just watch, listen and admire!

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The commentators barely spoke during Tortilas' test! Literally 3 or four words each IIRC.

I actually thought the commentary was great - my non-horsey OH sat beside me and watched some of it (we were watching on t'internet which was a bit jumpy) and not only did he watch more than 5 seconds of it without me holding him there by force, he also learnt a bit too. Bearing in mind he doesn't come and watch me compete because it is boring 'apart from the cross country', to hold his attention for 4 tests is pretty amazing, he commented on how much he liked the info. And he learnt when a horse is doing one-time and when it is doing two-time changes. He did ask if it was real-speed in the passage and comment 'your horse will never do that' about the piaffe, but you can't win them all!
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I found the commentary great this year, not too much and not too little. Carl Hester was very informative and I can imagine a lot of non-horsey people would have learnt a lot from the commentary. I also liked the commentary because Carl could then give his opinion on the horses and how he thought they looked. The coverage has been much improved from last year!

Well done BBC, great coverage
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I really liked it, for me it was great as I'm definatly not a dressage wiz, and I could understand what they were saying and then appreciate when the riders got it right
 
I enjoyed it, found the commentry useful as otherwise I wouldn't have been 100% if what I was looking at was meant to be what I thought it was!

Did anyone else think that *maybe* Carl Hester should have bought the next size up in tails? They were rather erm, tight (it's the Christmas holidays, it happens to the best of us!)
 
Actually I agree with the OP - I too thought the music was on much too quiet. Especially for the stunning dramatic music that Totilas is ridden to.

As for the commentary - I've no issues with the learned comments of CH and JH on particular movements. They are usually short and to the point. What drives me mad (as EVER!) is ruddy Michael Clayton giving us his "interestingly enough" anecdotes all over the music which do NOTHING to add to our understanding of what we are seeing!

I liked the way Judy Harvey said somewhere near the start of Totilas' test something like "It would be rude to comment on such perfection" - practically telling MC not to come out with his usual blithering!
 

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"It would be rude to comment on such perfection"

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Can you imagine the look Judy shot across the commentary box to Michael Clayton when she said that! Typical horsey woman, always in charge - what i like to see!
 
[Can you imagine the look Judy shot across the commentary box to Michael Clayton when she said that! Typical horsey woman, always in charge - what i like to see!

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Who is Michael Clayton? Mike Tucker has been in the commentary box for many years for the BBC - but Michael Clayton?
 
H's mum nearly as good as in the halt the horse has to stop (or similar!)

I thought there was too much commentary and they could have mentioned the odd thing during the test and then commented further when they were showing the slow mos.

the sound balance was really bad with the music very quiet (particularly the quieter music) against the commentators, I saw some of the eurosport version last night and the sound balance was much better to hear both the music and the comments or just the music if you preferred. I think then non horseys and me would have had the opportunity to watch it for its display value rather than so much on its technical merits.
 
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