Message from Scott Leggett, Area 12 Chair |
Greetings All!
September is upon us, a major time of change for us in many ways with Fall beginning, school restarting, and normally our bell ringing season begins. However, this is not a normal September as we all must face a whole new set of challenges with the pandemic including finding ways to keep connected with our handbell community and our art. Over the summer we have found new ways to be connected virtually and the Handbell Encounters of the Area 12 Kind virtual conference was one great example and we will continue to create similar experiences for our members in the upcoming season.
September is also the month the Area 12 board transitions to a new Chair and as such this is my last article as your Chair as our incoming Chair Elect, Kendra Symonds, takes the helm as Chair. I want to thank our entire board for their dedicated work for Area 12 and all the great events we have had these past two years from workshops, Spring Rings, Director Conferences, participation in the California All State Music Education Conference (CASMEC), all the planning and near execution of our Las Vegas conference that is just postponed to 2022, and finally the virtual conference this summer. I am proud to be part of this organization and I look forward to two more years as your Past Chair.
So onward to Fall and all the opportunities it brings us!
Scott
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We will be meeting via Zoom on the second Wednesday (7:00 p.m. Pacific Time) and fourth Sunday (3:00 p.m. Pacific Time) of each month to talk about various subjects that apply to our handbell life. If you have topics you like to suggest, please email Past Chair, Tessique Houston.
Sept. 9, 7:00 - Potpourri
Sept. 27, 3:00 - More Bell Trees with Linda Krantz
Oct. 14, 7:00 - subject TBA
Oct. 25, 3:00 - SiP and Ring with P.L. Grove
Nov. 11, 7:00 - subject TBA
Nov. 22, 3:00 - subject TBA
Meeting ID: 849 5779 5583
Passcode: 209656
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Saturday, September 12, 2020
9:30am-1:30pm
Led by Barb Walsh and Tessique Houston, via ZOOM
$30 for HMA members
$40 for non-members
$40 for all registrations received
after Sept 5, 2020
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In this workshop, instructors Barbara Walsh and Tessique Houston will cover different aspects of the Director as Teacher. Knowing your ringers and their skills, selecting music that fits your ringers and your needs, and score study to make your group their most successful. Attendance will be capped at 23, with a waiting list, if needed.
To attend this workshop, we ask that you please complete the registration form available here and then prepay the registration fee via our paypal page. Participants will need to have the following three pieces of music (please purchase whichever version, 2-3 oct. or larger, that would be most useful to you in the future):
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Despite the Storm by Cathy Moklebust, Choristers Guild CGB932 (2-3 oct. handbells with opt. Flute or Violin & opt. 2-3 oct. handchimes) or CGB933 (3-6 oct. handbells with opt. Flute or Violin & opt. 3-6 oct. handchimes), Level 3-
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Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee arr. by Arnold B. Sherman, Hope Publishing HP1652 (2-4 oct. handbells) or HP1851 (4-6 oct. handbells), Level 2/2+
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How Firm a Foundation arr. by Sandra Eithun, Choristers Guild CGB305 (2-3 oct. handbells) or CGB743 (3-5 oct. handbells), Level 1+
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This event is sponsored by Handbell Musicians of America. |
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Hey there, SoCal!
I hope you've all had a good summer despite the pandemic madness, and are planning some great things for this fall. As for me, my church is still not having groups meet in person, so our choir director and I are putting together some projects that can be recorded individually by our singers and ringers and then stitched together for use in our livestreamed worship services.
I'm thankful that I have the skills and tools to be able to do that, and am also amazed at how quickly the technology has advanced over the last few years, not only in quality, but also in usability. How fortunate we are to be able to so easily fellowship with one another via video chat!
When the time comes to have our groups meet & rehearse together in person, I am also thankful that the Handbell Industry Council (in consultation with Linnette Rodríguez-Figueroa, a handbell musician and epidemiologist) has put together "A Quick Guide to Handbells and Handchimes During the COVID-19 Pandemic."
Please let me know if you are working on any virtual projects this fall; I'd love to see what everybody is doing!
My Best,
-Michèle
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REDDING HANDBELL FESTIVAL 2020 POSTPONED
New Date: October 16, 2021
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After much consideration to the health and welfare of all people who were planning to attend the Redding Handbell Festival and following the guidelines of Shasta County Public Health Services in regards to COVID-19:
The October 10, 2020 Redding Handbell Festival has been rescheduled to October 16, 2021.
Everything will stay the same:
- Tessique Houston, Massed Director
- Barb Walsh, RedZone Director
- Classes and Music Selections
If you already purchased the music, no problem. Please save your registration forms and use them next year. We look forward to offering this endorsed event next year. Please stay safe and healthy.
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Greetings, CenCal!
In this difficult time for churches and musicians, are your bells lying dormant in a closet, awaiting the awakening kiss to ring again? Should you get the "no-bell" prize right now? I've noticed the absence of promo copies of music the publishers used to send out ~ so now we have the "no-bell-piece" prize...
For those of us whose heart is for making music with handbells, it's hard to endure the silence. Now is the time to start a four-in-hand quartet or learn to solo ring!
You probably have a bit more time on your hands, and maybe you are looking for something meaningful to do. Here's a suggestion: think of someone who has blessed your life in some way - perhaps another ringer or director - and send a text, email, note, or (gasp) make a phone call to thank them or otherwise encourage them for what they mean to you. Put courage into someone’s soul! Trust me, a word of affirmation goes a long way to lift the spirits of a discouraged person. You may never know how timely a kind word is to that person. Don’t be stingy with your words of affirmation, they are a precious gift to someone who may be hurting.
On that "note", let me thank everyone who took the time to send a personal message to me upon receiving the Honorary Life Award last month. It just tickled my tummy to hear from my handbell friends. Especially meaningful were the messages of celebration from my colleagues on the Area 12 Board. When no one reaches out and shares your joy, the sparkle gets tarnished. Who can you bless today?
Stay safe and well!
Christine D. Anderson
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Hey Bay Area,
The Bay Area Spring Ring is scheduled for April 16-17, 2021. To allow us to be responsive to the current pandemic, registration will open at the beginning of March. Start your planning now! Stephanie Rhoads will return next year, which means if you purchased music for this year's event you are all set for next year! Also returning is the Youth Track so if you have any young ringers, this is the year to sign them up!
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Howdy!
Is your group back to playing bells? If so, I'd really like to hear about it! It would be really great to communicate with everyone about what they're trying and pass it around. So often one group's good idea inspires another group to come up with a different idea that inspires another group, and so on. Collaboration makes things better! Tintab is messing around with a lot of different ideas right now, including some different ways to schedule rehearsals with different groups of people. I'm trying to view this whole thing as an opportunity to really think outside the box and try out some pretty hare-brained ideas. If they work, I'll be sure to share!
Speaking of sharing, don't forget that Tess and I are sharing our ideas at our directors' workshop via Zoom on September 12.
For more info, follow this link:
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We hope to see you there! |
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I hope everyone is safe and staying cool. I also am thinking good thoughts for all in northern California as the fires rage. I want to thank everyone who joined our first LA Metro Handbell Happy Hour. It was great to chat with local folks and even a few from outside our region. You are more than welcome to join our chat on Thursday, September 3 at 6:30 pm. Here is the link: |
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Items of note that were discussed during the happy hour were:
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Tables for COVID ringing
- Three-foot tables can be made for about $50 with plywood and legs
- Card tables. You may want to use double pads for height and be careful because most card table are 30 inches wide instead of our normal 3 feet.
- TV trays with a blanket, if you are simply “housing” a bell on the table versus performing table techniques.
- Percussion tray that attaches to a music stand that could be used to hold a bell!
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Padding for practice on concrete; consider
- Moving pads
- Interlocking foam floor mats to cushion your feet as well as protect the bells if they fall.
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Gauging a group’s comfort level with returning to rehearsal or how to practice. The thought behind this is to not pressure anyone in a group because they may not be comfortable coming back but don’t want to let the group down.
- Survey Monkey has a free version that allows you to ask up to 10 questions.
- You can do polls during Zoom meetings.
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As much as we want to ring, there is a need for congregations to hear music created by its members that provides an escape from COVID, even if it is for just a few minutes. To that end, right now I try and pick “comfort” hymns and songs that folks know and can be taken to wherever they need to go. For example, in July I played “How Great Thou Art” and in August “I played In the Garden”. Though I guess I am showing my age in that Pastor said that “In the Garden” has not been in the last two versions of the Lutheran hymnal. But I did find a 2017 video of Alan Jackson performing the piece. So, I felt a bit better. (If you have never heard In the Garden, look it up. The words and the melody are very soothing.)
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There are lots of ways to get bells into a livestreamed or live service
- Pre-record a socially distance piece and play it back
- Perform a solo, duet, quartet or whatever you can round up
- Bell tree songs can be easily done either one that is written for a bell tree or a single line melody from the hymnal
We did have some folks say that their pastors or the “COVID Committee” have said no to ringing. I know that pastors and congregations have a lot on their plates these days. If you are in this situation, I feel for you. While it may be obvious to you and me that we can ring safely in COVID times, they don’t necessarily know what we know, and we don’t know what they are considering. So, try and enter a conversation.
For example, most handbell groups are considered “choirs,” and EVERYONE knows that choirs are super spreaders! You may have to educate folks that handbell choirs are not super spreaders. We are more like someone playing the piano or the drums. We use a lot of equipment and already use a lot of space; how can you do this safely? You may need to explain that we do have the ability to adjust how we ring and what pieces we ring so that we can socially distance and still make beautiful music.
If you cannot be in a normal rehearsal space or sanctuary, consider taking your rehearsals outdoors. I have seen beautiful pieces performed in a garden or by a stream. We are extremely fortunate to have great scenery in our area that would make great backdrops for a piece. You may also need to remind folks that we in general rehearse weekly and the general consensus is that the virus does not live on surfaces more than 72 hours (the longest I have seen in literature is 5 days), so if we are not sharing bells/foam etc. then a weekly rehearsal should have minimal risk relative to contact transmission. You can also point out that there are guidelines published by the Handbell Industry Council. You can offer up to create a protocol or plan that your group will adhere to while ringing.
On a high note, on August 23, I know that bells were ringing in three different congregations in our region: one sextet, one solo and one virtual quartet. Keep up the good work.
Please put April 17, 2021 on your calendar. By hook or by crook (live or virtual) we will have an LA Metro Spring Ring. Stay tuned!
I hope to see some of your faces on September 3 at our Happy Hour. I would like to discuss an idea I have for the upcoming holiday season.
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A full-service handbell store
with music and accessories:
gloves
gifts
maintenance items
mallets
binders
bell tree items
Malmark products
visit us at
612-208-1741
877-426-3235
6603 Queen Ave S, Suite S
Richfield, MN 55423
4/21
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Aloha!
Handbell groups are trying to figure out what they are needing to do to get their groups back into worship services. One of the daunting tasks that I had was finding music I can use that can either be performed using all music stands, or with people on individual tables. Thankfully I have two family members that can be on a six foot table.
I have a small sanctuary, so I originally went with all music stands. Then the issue became, "What do I have in my file of music?" Music with only two bells per person, no mallets, and techniques that you don’t need a table for. I had a really hard time even going through my files. Then I found that some positions needed tables but others did not. On Facebook, I saw a few people posting their list of music that does not share bells, that can use individual tables, and also music that can be used with music stands. I love lists that come up on Facebook, so I jotted them down. I then had an idea to partner with Carol Scheel from Heitz Handbells. We have contacted arrangers and composers to look through the their own music to find pieces that fit our COVID-19 ringing. I am compiling a list of music for music stands only, music that needs tables (or some tables), music with no bell sharing. I have two lists: one has 6 to 16 bell music for smaller numbers of people, and a list of 2-3 octave music (7 to 11 ringers) and 3-5 plus octave music for larger groups. This is a tool to help get you started.
The list is over 1400 titles! This not only helps us but also helps our publishers and arrangers in selling music. These lists will be posted on www.HeitzHandbells.com, and on Face Book: Handbell People, Handbell L, and Team Handbell. This will be an ongoing project. If you would like, you can shoot me an email or send me a DM on Face Book.
Mahalo
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Teachers, would you like the use of a 3-octave set of handbells or handchimes to add interest and a new dimension to your music class?
Area 12 encourages schools and other educational institutions, both public and private, to develop educational programs using handbells and handchimes.
To support the development of such programs, Area 12 has two 3-octave sets of handbells and three 3-octave sets of handchimes for loan.
To learn more about the responsibilities and procedures for participating in this program, click here.
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Looking for a previous issue? We archive the Twelfth Tone on our website: |
The Twelfth Tone is published the first of each month, except July, by Area 12 of the Handbell Musicians of America (The Guild). The Guild is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the musical art of handbell/handchime ringing through education, community, and communication. The editor of this publication reserves the right to reject or modify copy.
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