Hymns have long been a means of trying to understand the unfathomable nature and Person of God. Immortal, Invisible God Only Wise, to the tune ST. DENIO, speaks of how God is beyond our comprehension who reaches to us from His throne. Immortal, invisible, God only wise, In light inaccessible hid from our eyes, Most …
Tag: handbells
Handbells were invented in 17-century England as a practice tool for tower bell ringers. They could then rehearse in warmer and cheerier places than belfries - to wit, the local pubs. At some point, someone noticed that it was possible to play tunes (rather than just "changes") on handbells, and so "tune ringing" began. The music available from Choraegus followed the tune ringing tradition as practiced and performed in the modern era,
Dec 12
Deal with the Christmas Rush
It’s getting into the middle of December, and that means the Christmas Rush (whatever that happens to mean to you) is in full surge. For most of us musicians, it probably means surviving the last couple of rehearsals and performances. But… sometimes that very, very late request comes in. Maybe someone’s had their musicians cancel …
Dec 05
Advent’s in Full Swing!
This coming Sunday will be “Advent 2” (imaginative, yes? 😀 ). It’s the second of the four Sundays before Christmas. It’s a season of preparation for the coming of the Christ Child, and many churches put a lot of effort into making it something to remember. If you participate in the music ministry at your …
Nov 26
We Gather Together
It’s Thanksgiving Day, possibly one of the highest-caloric-content dates on the American calendar. There’ll be turkey, potatoes/rice, candied yams, stuffing, cranberry sauce, ham, mulled cider, and pies, pies, and pies for many of us today (perhaps to carbo-fat-protein-load for Black Friday?). Anyway, we’ve just added our eight-bell arrangement of We Gather Together (hymn tune KREMSER) …
We Gather Together/We Praise Thee, O God Our Redeemer (KREMSER) – Eight handbells
The hymn We Praise Thee, O God Our Redeemer, also sung as We Gather Together, was adapted from a sixteenth-century Dutch folk song, and endures in our hymnody as a glorious way for us to turn our hearts to God. We praise you, O God, our Redeemer, Creator; in grateful devotion our tribute we bring; …
Nov 25
We Three Kings
We had such a huge response to our freebie offer last week that we’ve decided to offer one more free download this season. It’s our recently-revised “standard” eight-bell arrangement of We Three Kings. If you already have it (and get the new version, of course), you’ll notice that the changes are all in the first …
Nov 17
Yay! Free Music!
We made an update to our “standard” eight-bell arrangement of ‘Twas in the Moon of Wintertime recently. Because only the first page was changed, we’ve decided to offer it as a free download until Sunday, November 22nd. Come and get your free copy – you’ll love playing it!
Nov 11
Veteran’s Day
(Larry writing…) It’s incredible to think about the sacrifices “The Greatest Generation” made on our behalf. In the desperate times of World War II, they saw the need and committed themselves to solving the problems created by the Axis powers. It was no different twenty-five years before, when a different – but still huge – …
Sep 23
O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go
Now and then we’ll be in church, and ask ourselves, “Would the song we just sang work with just eight bells?” Then we check the hymnal, count the number of melody notes, and start wondering… until we get home and try writing an arrangement. That’s what happened with O Love That Wilt Not Let Me …
O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go (ST. MARGARET) – Eight handbells
O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go is a lovely hymn that reminds us of the infinitely deep peace and protection that God offers those who trust Him. O love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee; I give Thee back the life I owe, That in Thine …
