Jesus Christ is so incredibly far above everything else in this universe that He deserves all of our love and worship. The hymn Crown Him with Many Crowns gives a small idea of what this means, but His greatness still exceeds any description we can muster. It’s fitting that it’s set to the hymn tune …
Tag: 8-bell
Starting in 2012, we (Larry and Carla Sue) developed a large repertoire of music for eight handbells which we perform as four-in-hand duets. These pieces ranged from fairly simple to maniacally difficult, and eventually led to the creation of their “Surprisingly Easy”™ eight-bell arrangements so that there would be more options for the ringing world at large.
As eight-bell repertoire works well with a two-in-hand quartet (two bells each) or a four-in-hand duo, or with a trio where the bells are divided 4-2-2 or 3-3-2. We've even seen one instance of playing eight-bell music with eight ringers with one bell apiece, a la Sacred Harp.
May 15
Take the Name of Jesus with You – the Standard Eight-Bell Version!
Sometimes we release the “Surprisingly Easy”™ version of an eight-bell score really quickly, and then it takes a bit longer to arrange or learn the “standard” (whatever that actually means) arrangement. Sometimes it happens in the other order, too – it often just depends on which one came together properly first. Take the Name of …
Apr 26
Finlandia
There seems to be no end to the repertoire that can be put into eight handbells. That’s good – we wouldn’t want to run out of possibilities! This time, we have a classical piece to share. Jean Sibelius wrote his Finlandia as a protest against the Russian Empire that wanted to take over Finland in …
Sibelius – Finlandia – Eight handbells
Sibelius composed Finlandia as a musical protest against the Russian Empire. The entire work is a majestic presentation that tells the story of the Finnish struggle against tyranny. It’s full of musical pictures of what that part of history was like. Finland, behold, thy daylight now is dawning, the threat of night has now been …
Apr 08
Flow Gently, Sweet Afton
Larry and Carla are part of Inspiration International, a UK handbell ensemble whose purpose is to take handbell music into the lives of people who sometimes feel forgotten by society. Since two of the members are in the USA, it’s a challenge for the three to get together to play. So when Larry and Carla …
As With Gladness Men of Old (DIX) – Eight handbells
As you many know, this Christmas carol is sung to the hymn tune DIX (named for its composer, William Chatterton Dix), which also is used for our eight-handbell arrangement of the hymn For the Beauty of the Earth. Purchasing this 8-bell arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to four copies for your …
Apr 03
Two Titles for One Score!
As you know, many (hymn) tunes are used for more than one set of lyrics. HYFRYDOL, for instance, shows up many times, and often several times in the same hymnal! We have a new eight-handbell score based on the hymn tune DIX, which doubles as the music for For the Beauty of the Earth and …
Mar 27
A Glorious Easter!
He is risen! It’s Easter Sunday, and we’ll be heading to church to play eight-bell duets in three morning services in a few minutes. We know many of you will be doing – or already are doing (because we’re in California) this as well, and we hope you’ll have a glorious celebration of our risen …
Mar 26
Sweet Hour of Prayer
Here’s a new eight-handbell arrangement of the famous hymn Sweet Hour of Prayer. The hymn tune was composed by William Bradbury (who gave us many other wonderful tunes as well – can you name one or two?). This arrangement can easily be transposed to work with choir as a thoughtful, meditative piece for your service.
Sweet Hour of Prayer (SWEET HOUR) – Eight handbells
Prayer is how we keep in touch with God. We pray for salvation, and protection, and guidance, and … well, we pray when life isn’t making sense. We also pray when we’re thankful, and when we can see amazing things happening around us. Add it all up over twenty-four hours, and a prayerful person probably …
