Music Notes 10-27-24
We welcome my talented wife, Eileen, to the piano and organ for the next 2 weeks as Paul takes a trip to Barcelona and Mallorca. (And he didn’t even invite us to come along!)
The bells in English bell towers ring with complicated patterns, called changes, and the people who do the ringing, volunteers from within the congregation, are called “change ringers”. They even have local competitions between ringer teams. If you’ve never been in the bell tower of an English church, it’s drafty and, in the winter, darn cold. Sometime between 1694 and 1724, the bell makers of Aldbourne, England, Robert and William Cor, began making small bells that could be held in the hand and were tuned to the same notes as the bells in the bell towers. This allowed the change ringers to learn and practice the complex rhythms in the warmth and comfort of the choir room, or better yet, the pub. While touring England in the late 1800’s, P.T Barnum saw a set of these, acquired a set for himself and brought it back to the U.S and began displaying it as another of his “oddities”, like the Fiji Mermaid and General Tom Thumb. A lady from Boston saw them and relocated to England for a couple of years to learn bell ringing, both with the large bells and the handbells. That lady, Margaret Shurcliff, was presented a set of handbells by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry after performing two separate 2 ½ hour change ringing peals in 1 day. She brought them home in 1902 and began the tradition of handbell ringing in the United States (although they continued to call it “English” handbell ringing).
Due to the materials they are made from (the same materials used to make tower bells), the English handbells make a tone that doesn’t allow “groovy” chords – there are conflicting overtones that turn the sound into mud. American manufacturers Schulmerich and Malmark (both based in Pennsylvania) began experimenting with materials that would create a cleaner sound and thus allow for “groovy” chords and thicker musical textures, making it possible to play musical pieces, rather than just changes. Today, handbells are a staple in the church and in schools, and are popular because they don’t require “musical talent” to participate.
When we got word that Panorama Presbyterian Church was closing its doors, I paid them a visit one Sunday in August and was told they were looking for a home for their bells. My wife, Eileen, has directed handbells for years at her church, and I’ve been wishing for a chance to bring handbells to FPCE – one more addition to our musical buffet. I chatted with their bell director and, long story short, Panorama’s handbells are now in residence at FPCE. This Sunday we will get a taste of the bells, as her trio – The Belfry Trio of Dawn Corner, Megan Lee and Sherron Corner – serenade us just before Henry’s sermon. Sherron, the director, will be joining us at FPCE and would like to invite anyone who might be interested in learning a bit more to come over after the service. Handbells are tremendous fun to play, and it doesn’t require training. Here are a couple of links you can check out to get a feel for it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHgpuWPg1OE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7SLPvGq7p8
We hope you’ll join us and come up to check out the bells afterwards.