It's clear now that we will be dealing with the pandemic for longer than any of us initially hoped. And as we inch into autumn, gradual changes are upon us. For some of us, schools have reopened, but many have remained closed. Many of our churches meet online or outdoors. Some groups have resumed rehearsing, while others are just getting off the ground. It seems impossible to predict the future when community health guidelines change weekly. How then can we plan our ringing seasons?

There is no one right answer to this question because every ensemble has different needs. Our practice facilities might be unavailable, we may have ringers who are high-risk, or maybe there are no performance venues open for holiday gigs. Some of us can't wait to ring again, and some of us are quite happy to wait it out. We have to be flexible and take every challenge as it comes. To that end, here are some links to resources to help you in planning a season that fits your group's needs. Thank you to Karen Carlisle and others for compiling the repertoire lists! And even if you're not rehearsing, you can stay connected by attending one of the many virtual get-togethers we have planned around Area 12!

May you find peace and joy in your music making —

Kendra

Your Area 12 board met virtually September 19 and 20. We covered Kendra's transition to chair, focused our efforts on assigned tasks, discussed conference venues and potential candidates for elected positions, and revised the board meeting schedule (increasing frequency to quarterly, adding virtual meetings). A new social media liaison position has been added. We hope to fill both this position and that of membership director soon. Our next meeting will be held virtually on January 3.

For those of us that love handbells, COVID certainly has put a few barriers, hurdles, fences, and walls in our way to get to ringing handbells. At the most recent Area 12 Board meeting, we decided we would make a conscious effort to think about what we CAN do. So, let me invite you to participate in LA Metro’s Christmas Handbells – Virtual Massed Ring Event.

The end result of this event will be virtual handbell ensemble videos of both John Behnke’s The First Noel and Alex Guebert’s Carol of the Bells.   

Our clinician is Alex Guebert, whose thoughtful direction brings out the very best in the music and the handbell musicians. Anyone can participate in this event (no geographic boundaries). During the Advent and Christmas seasons your church CAN have bigger handbell pieces presented. We have made arrangements with both publishers to make this possible.The virtual ensemble pieces will be a part of the Pasadena Symphony’s Home for the Holidays virtual concert. 

This may sound a little scary, but we will walk you through the process and have instructions. In fact, there will be a video on how to record your submission available prior to the workshop that will be shown and discussed during the workshop. You CAN do this.

If you are seeing any barriers, fences, or hurdles to your participation, please contact me at [email protected]. I will do my best to turn your ”I can’t participate because...” into your ”I CAN participate, I just need to…”. Example, ”I can’t participate because I don’t have bells.” In the LA Metro Region, we have folks that are willing to lend you bells! And, for those not in the LA Metro Region, I am sure that the HMA Area Leadership in your Area would be happy to help get bells into your hands. I know that in some cases economics is an issue. There are scholarships available so that you can purchase the music and pay the participation fee.

Registration opens October 15, 2020. More information can be found at: http://area12.handbellmusicians.org/christmas-handbells/. 

This event is sponsored by Handbell Musicians of America.

and other opportunities, click here.  

For information on Bay Area concerts, events, and other opportunities, click here.  

For those who do not know me well, let me give you a brief background. I am highly passionate about bells in education. I have a Bachelor's degree in Music with handbells from the University of Redlands. Following my Bachelor's degree, I completed two Masters in Music degrees at Azusa Pacific University—one in Conducting and one in Handbell Performance. I am a founding member of the community handbell ensemble Timbré, and also a solo ringer. I'm the former Music Director at Westchester United Methodist Church in Southern California. I enjoy teaching handbells at workshops and events and have done so across the United States. I also love hearing new ideas, so if you have any ideas about how to promote handbells in education, please send me your suggestions at [email protected].  

Also don't forget that Area 12 has bell and chime sets available to loan. Schools who are looking to start handbell programs and need equipment loaned can reach out to [email protected] for more information about our loan program. Now is a great time to get these programs started, as bells and chimes can be a great alternative to choirs and bands which have been classified as "super-spreaders." Area 12 also has great resources available on how to ring safely using CDC and social distancing guidelines.  

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