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Our National
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Message from the Chair - Tessique Houston
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Hello Area 12!
I hope all of your end of the season activities have been successful! As we head into the summer season, I hope you find time for rest, rejuvenation and renewal. That could mean taking time off from bells, but I think it can also mean experiencing bells in a new way. There are several concerts and events that are happening this summer and you can find them on the Area 12 calendar. If you are usually too busy to get to concerts in your area, now you have a chance! There are events happening that can help you to keep up or enhance your skills instead of letting them get lost with the summer break. I encourage you to find a new and fun way to experience bells.
As I hope you all know by now, Handbell Musicians of America's National Seminar will be held in our area this summer! We are still in need of equipment and bells to be loaned and for bodies to be volunteered. Besides the typical sets of bells and chimes, I am looking for some specific equipment like keyboards, music stands and foam. Contact me if you will help us out!
We are also in need of volunteers. These volunteers don't have to be ringers, just people willing to help. For load in day,
July 11, we need 12-15 people who can lift cases and push carts as we will be setting up the classrooms. For the rest of the event,
July 12-15, we need 8-10 people a day in each of two shifts,
8:00 am to 1:00 pm and
2:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Contact me if you are able to volunteer to make this event awesome!
Until next time!
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Communiqué - Barbara Meinke, Communications
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Northern CA - Nancy Schmitt, Regional Coordinator
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Hello Northern California,
It is always nice to hear about young people ringing bells but it is extra nice to see young people
ringing bells. Eureka and Redding will be very lucky to experience the performance of CAST IN
BRONZE on June 10 (Eureka) and June 11 (Redding). Young people ages 12-19 coming from Ohio on
their summer tour will treat the communities to a concert. Without young ringers, handbell
ringing will become a lost art, so I am very excited about this event and hope you will attend!
I am also excited about our fall event,
Redding Handbell Festival, on October 14. What a great way to start your fall season and have music to
play for the entire year. There will be massed ringing, classes, and a bronze choir attached to the festival
for those ringers wanting a challenge.
The Redding Handbell Festival and the CAST IN BRONZE
concert are posted on the Area 12 website calendar. Be sure to check these events out for concert
times and places and registration forms and general information.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2017
SIMPSON UNIVERSITY
REDDING, CA
Mary Balkow, Massed Ringing Conductor
Barb Walsh,
Red Zone Bronze Conductor
Registration: ONLY $35.00!
This event is endorsed by Handbell Musicians of America.
Ringcerely,
Northern California Regional Coordinator
For information on Northern California's concerts, events,
and other opportunities,
click here
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Central CA - Christine Anderson, Regional Coordinator
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Summertime Tips! If your handbell choirs are taking a summer break, here are some ideas for the months off:
You might want to delay polishing your bells until just before starting up ringing in the fall to prevent tarnish and dust collecting on the bells during summer months.
Now is an excellent time to let 4-5 of your ringers who just can't let go of the ringing season to form a quartet or quintet. No director needed - just make sure everyone understands the techniques needed to be successful in an small ensemble.
Quintets: You can't beat Doug Wagner's series called "Five By Five"! Limited choreography, great arrangements.
Quartets ringing on the table like 4 solo ringers: Best music EVER is Cantabile Press catalog! Again, limited choreography, but it's there for suggestions. My quartet, the Medallion Ringers, usually changed it around a bit. LOVE this catalog!
Four-in-hand quartets - my passion!: Medallion Ringers rang the written notes G4-C7, but transposed the BELLS, so we held Bb4-Eb7. Reason...the G4/A4 in anyone's left hand is pretty heavy, but a minor third up is a lot better! If anyone would like my hand-out for this type of quartet, including transposition chart, please email me. Best music to start: "Four-in-Hand Quartet Ringing" by Dan Miller.
Solo ringing: Is there an outstanding, but perhaps
bored,
ringer who needs more challenge than what the bell choir offers? This is the perfect person to show the special techniques unique to solo ringing and let him/her go to the bell table with your blessings. Check out the Hope catalog for instructional materials, including lots of music guaranteed to provide complete choreography.
Have a great summer, be safe and happy wherever your paths take you ~ and I hope to see many of my CenCal ringers and directors at
National Seminar in Southern California in July!
Central California Regional Coordinator
For information on Central California's concerts, events,
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Southern CA - Michèle Sharik, Regional Coordinator
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Hi there, SoCal!
Our annual Spring Ring was a big hit! We had 104 registrants representing 11 groups and including 5 individuals from all over the SoCal and LA Metro regions. We had 20 ringers sign up for our Bronze Vision track in which they learned two Level 4 pieces to present at our concert. Our amazing clinician, Stevie Berryman, led all of us through four massed ringing pieces, worked with the Bronze Vision group to present two pieces, and just generally made us laugh while we learned. Our hosts, the Tower Bells of St. Thomas More Catholic Church and their director Douglas Lynn, made us all feel welcome in their wonderful facility. As event coordinator, I can attest they made my job so much easier by making sure everything ran smoothly in terms of facility usage.
I hope you will all join us again at St. Thomas More Catholic Church for next year's event on Saturday, May 19 with clinician KatRyn Howell!
As we head into the summer months, I do hope you will all take advantage of events near and far (hint, hint:
National Seminar in Garden Grove!) to learn from each other, meet new and interesting people, and just have a wonderful handbell time.
For information on Southern California's concerts,
events,
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Northern NV - Barb Walsh, Regional Coordinator
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Howdy!
We had two great events in Reno!
The first one was our 15th Annual Sierra Spring Ring. This year it was held at Marvin Picollo School which allowed us to offer more classes (taught by members of Harmony Handbells and
Tintabulations
) which were very well received. It was great to reconnect with 70+ ringer friends!
Our second event was our Umpteenth Annual Young Ringers Festival. There were slightly fewer students than last year, but they were definitely mighty in sound, technique and musicality! Kudos to Debbie Vaughan for the wonderful event!
Northern Nevada Regional Coordinator
For information on Northern Nevada's concerts, events,
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SF Bay Area - Kendra Scott, Regional Coordinator
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Hi Bay Area!
The last weekend in April over 100 ringers enjoyed playing together at the Bay Area Spring Ring at Valley Church in Cupertino. Our clinician was Bill Mathis and we were treated to a noontime concert of "Christmas in April" by Kathie Fink. We had a fantastic youth workshop led by Barb Walsh. In keeping with the cutting edge of Silicon Valley, we were also able to offer a class on using a music tablet to cut down on page turns. It's pretty amazing what you can do with a .pdf and a foot pedal!
The day culminated in an evening concert of massed ringing and solo numbers by local groups. Some folks also attended a Director's Workshop
with Bill and Carolynne Mathis
in Concord
on Sunday
afternoon.
Summer is often a time for rejuvenation and relaxing. Some of us welcome this time off whereas others just can't help but keep on ringing! What do you like to do in the summer? Play in small ensembles? Do bell repair? Plan out your next season? Offer summer camps? Let us know!
Once again Area 12 will be offering Back to Bells workshops in September at a location near you. Do you know of a set of bells in need of ringing? Help us help you get those bells dusted off and making music again! Contact us if you'd like to host a workshop location or know someone who does!
Remember to check out our
Events Calendar for spring and summer concerts in your area!
Keep those bells a-ringing!
Kendra Scott
Bay Area Regional Coordinator
For information on San Francisco
Bay Area's concerts, events,
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News in Education - KatRyn Howell, Education
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Southern NV - Alison Pruett, Regional Coordinator
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Alison Pruett
S Nevada Regional Coordinator
For information on Southern Nevada's concerts, events,
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Hawaii - Karen Carlisle, Regional Coordinator
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LA Metro - F. Thomas Simpson, Regional Coordinator
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F. Thomas Simpson
LA Metro Regional Coordinator
For information on LA Metro's concerts, events,
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