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A concert featuring horses and symphonic music may seem like an odd combination, but that's the performance lineup for "Back in the Saddle," a Sept. 4 fundraiser for Swaner EcoCenter in Park City.
The fundraiser will showcase Sage Creek Equestrian horses performing classical dressage set to music by Kurt Bestor. Dressage, also known as horse ballet, is the art of training a horse in precision movements that grew out of wartime cavalry.
Bestor composed six original pieces for the show, said Donnette Hicks, the co-owner of Heber's Sage Creek Equestrian, who will direct the show.
"He took time to come out and see the horses and it just inspired him to [compose] the music," Hicks said.
The program will feature 14 horse breeds and their riders, who will perform with members of the American Festival Orchestra, directed by Bestor. Craig Jessop, head of the Utah State University music department and former music director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, will be the master of ceremonies.
The show's stars are Rembrandt, a black Friesian stallion owned by Sage Creek Equestrian co-owner Jim Hicks, and I'm the Lion Share, a Gypsy stallion from San Diego, ranked No. 1 in dressage in the country. Hicks will ride Rembrandt to perform in the finale, "Magnificence."
"The spirit of the show is to bring the horse front and center and [display] its nobility, strength and beauty," said Donnette Hicks, who said she is passionate about the preservation of mustangs so they can roam free. She decided to show her support of the Swaner center by directing the show pro bono.
The fundraiser also marks Swaner EcoCenter's recent partnership with Utah State University. The center has preserved 1,200 acres in Kimball Junction and Park City, originally used to graze cattle, now restored to wetlands. As a result, many animals have returned to the area, including foxes, sandhill cranes, moose and elk.
Together with USU, Swaner aims to educate people about land preservation and conservation, said Annette Herman Harder, executive director of the center. The new partnership will offer environmental classes, lectures and other educational opportunities at the Park City center.
"The evening is about movement," Harder said. "Swaner is moving forward and the horses are moving to this beautiful music. The connection of the horses [with Swaner's mission] is that there is beauty in life and land."
'Back in the Saddle'
P The program features six original pieces composed by Kurt Bestor: "Magnificence," "Spanish Bandidas," "Tango," "Whimsical Stallion," "Elegance" and "Noble Stallion."
When • Saturday, Sept. 4, 5:30 p.m.
Where • Gray Barron Ranch, 5304 Mountain Meadows Lane, Park City
Info • $200; RSVP by calling 888-653-6246 or e-mailing teri.rasmussen@usu.edu
More • For information about the Swaner EcoCenter, visit http://www.swanerecocenter.org; for details on Sage Creek Equestrian, visit http://www.sagecreekequestrian.com.