Welcome to our third “surprisingly easy” Christmas eight-bell collection! We’ve been having such a wonderful time with our Christmas (and other) music that we thought you should have another set of pieces to play for the holidays! You can play this music with two four-in-hand ringers… or you could have four ringers with two bells …
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.
Oct 18
The Most-Requested Handbell Piece of All?
We’ve finally created an arrangement of Mykola Leontovych’s “Ukrainian Bell Carol”, probably better-known as “Carol of the Bells”. We speculate that it’s the most-requested handbell piece of all time, if only because of the title (and Christmas advertisements!). So if you’re a four-in-hand duet, you can have this in your repertoire and not disappoint those …
Oct 14
Advent is soon… and here’s another piece to play!
As you may know, plainchant was one of the great expressions of church music. It’s been that way for hundreds of years – and some of the songs from those times are still with us. We’ve set Divinum Mysterium (aka “Of the Father’s Love Begotten”) for eight handbells, and think it will go well with …
Of the Father’s Love Begotten (DIVINUM MYSTERIUM) – Eight handbells
The chant DIVINUM MYSTERIUM dates back to the thirteenth century; we now recognize it by the lyrics: “Of the Father’s Love Begotten”. You can imagine how it would resonate in a stone monastery far off in the hills! Of the Father’s love begotten ere the worlds began to be, He is Alpha and Omega; He …
Oct 04
But while you look forward to Christmas… another collection!
We’re gearing up for Christmas (because we have to practice our music now to be ready in time…)! It’s an exciting time of year because we love the holidays so much. We really, really love sharing new music with all of you, because it means you can get something to add to your repertoire as …
Sep 14
Christmas is on the Way!
Yes, it’s pretty early to be thinking about Christmas shopping – but not about rehearsing for the holiday season! Most of the handbell directors (and choral directors, too) we know, start choosing their season’s music in August or September so they can focus on the music when everyone’s together. We’ve posted our first new Christmas …
Off to California – Eight handbells
As we release this new arrangement of an Irish-American hornpipe, we’re celebrating two years together in the USA! This arrangement is sold as a “dual-range”™ PDF. Alternate Titles: Bound For California Fireman’s Reel The Humours Of California The Juggler The Portsmouth Hornipe The Whiskey Standard Version: ”Dual-Range”™ Score Package: $ US G5-based practice track: $ …
Eight-Bell Hornpipes
Hornpipes are songs from long-ago England and Ireland, originally played on wind instruments. They became popular, and are notably associated with sailors because they could be danced in the limited available space on ships. They’re usually in 4/4, with the eighth notes being swung. Many of them follow an AABA phrase pattern, which makes them …
Aug 11
A New Collection!
We’ve (finally!) put together our first collection of eight-bell hymns! It’s a set of eight arrangements that you can use throughout the year, so you can use it as the bulk of your small ensemble pieces for a whole season (adding in other pieces for Christmas, of course!) – or you can even play them …
Take My Life and Let It Be (HENDON) – Eight handbells
Hymnody, the body of hymns that we have and sing, often combines the same words with several different tunes. Sometimes we also match the same melody with different words – it can enrich our Christian musical experience. In this case, César Malan wrote the hymn tune HENDON, which also works with the same words as …
