The 2017 Christmas and holiday season will soon be upon us! Handbells can bring a magical and festive atmosphere to any Christmas or holiday event. We can give a seasonal performance of carols and holiday music, or provide background music to add that special, welcoming touch to your corporate event, community group celebration, winter wedding, or holiday gathering. Nothing says Christmas quite as well as the traditional sound of English handbells – and our duet performances can bring the sounds of the season to hotel lobbies, department stores, shopping boutiques, community groups and private house parties alike.
The 2017 holiday season is fast approaching. We’re looking forward to performances in Jenison, South Olive, East Lansing, Grand Rapids, Marne and Holland, Michigan. We’ll be playing our handbell duets at “Christmas by Candlelight” events, corporate holiday parties, Christmas luncheons, and worship services. We’ll also be performing with the Zeeland Community Band in their Christmas concert on December 11th.
We’re probably the smallest community handbell choir in West Michigan. That means we take up far less room than a traditional bell choir would. We’re ideal for venues where space is limited, such as small church sanctuaries, community halls, hotel lobbies, and private homes.
A handbell performance could be exactly what you need for the 2017 Christmas and holiday season! Contact us to request our current fee schedule, ask questions, or book us to enhance your Christmas event with the traditional sound of handbells!
We’re almost at the end of our first Christmas and holiday performances in Michigan. We say “almost” because we still have one Christmas in January performance to give! After next week, we’ll be putting away our Christmas carol music, and working on other things.
Our first holiday season was a fairly quiet one, performance-wise. We deliberately kept it that way because we had family visiting in the second half of December and wanted to make that our priority. Still, we managed to fit in some fun performances first.
Ringing at the Salvation Army Red Kettle
We continued our support of the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle campaign this year. We volunteered to play 12 hours of Christmas music at D&W Fresh Market here in Holland. Thankfully, we were able to play indoors! We now have great respect for the volunteers here in Michigan who ring that tiny bell in various outdoor locations in cold weather! We had a fun surprise when Tracy Hinson from local news channel FOX 17 arrived one morning to interview us. She filmed some of our playing, and even joined in to play one bell at the end of Jingle Bells! Like us, Tracy moved to this area from California, and has enjoyed the challenge of dealing with Michigan winter weather!
Playing handbells for the Salvation Army at D&W Fresh Market in Holland
On December 3rd, we gave a performance at a breakfast fundraiser for local non-profit Grandville Friendship Homes. This turned out to be a very successful event and an enjoyable start to our holiday performances. We had the opportunity to see a presentation by a local chalk artist too!
Holiday handbells in Grandville!
On December 6th, we made our first long drive across Michigan in cold weather. It felt like quite an adventure to load our bells and equipment into the car and drive through the cold and rain. We drove to Ypsilanti, where we gave a concert for residents of a senior living community.
Getting ready for a performance at a senior living community in Ypsilanti
A performance with the Zeeland Community Band
On December 12th, we performed in concert with the Zeeland Community Band. We played a selection of 8-bell pieces for an enthusiastic audience. We also added our bells to whole-band pieces such as I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day and the Hallelujah Chorus. We’d attended several rehearsals before the event, and very much enjoyed working with this skilled group of musicians. We hope to have the opportunity to perform with them again in the future!
With band director Rose Wiersma after the concert
A couple of days later, we presented an hour-long program of Christmas handbell duets at a luncheon party here in Holland, Michigan. We enjoyed sharing our music with this friendly local group, who asked lots of interesting questions about our history and playing techniques!
Playing handbells at a Christmas luncheon party in Holland, Michigan
Christmas Eve at Ridge Point Community Church
Our last-but-one performance of the 2016 Christmas season was at Ridge Point Community Church, here in Holland. We were missing our usual Christmas Eve services at Los Altos United Methodist Church in California, so we very much appreciated being invited to play at Ridge Point. We played a 15-minute duet prelude before each of the services, and a postlude afterwards. Most exciting was the opportunity to add our bells to a wonderful performance of Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24.
Christmas Eve at Ridgepoint Community Church, Holland
Just one more performance left!
Now we have just one more holiday performance to give. After that, we’ll be saying a sad farewell to our Christmas music. We’ll have to find out what we can remember about playing our non-Christmas pieces!
We’ll be leading a workshop with a church handbell choir in a couple of weeks’ time. After that, we’ll be starting to prepare for a duet concert in Warner Robins, Georgia at the beginning of April. In the meantime, we’ll be enjoying our first Michigan winter, and finding out more about SNOW!
We’ve been rehearsing Christmas and holiday handbell duets for a couple of months now. Still, it’s hard to believe how quickly the holiday season has arrived. We probably say that every year… but for handbell musicians, it’s the truth!
Starting the holiday season here in Holland
The Salvation Army Red Kettle
In the last few weeks, we’ve been having fun playing festive handbell music at the Salvation Army Red Kettle here in Holland, at D&W Fresh Market. We had an exciting time being interviewed and filmed by Tracy Hinson from Fox 17, and we’ve been enjoying sharing our music with shoppers. We still have a few more sessions planned. You can see us between 10:00am and midday on the following dates:
Monday, December 5
Thursday, December 15
Tuesday, December 20
Salvation Army Bell Ringers at D&W, Holland. Photo courtesy of Fox 17
In the next few weeks, we’re looking forward to providing holiday entertainment at events and parties in Grandville and Holland, driving to Ypsilanti for a Christmas party at a Senior Living Community, and performing in concert with the Zeeland Community Band (more information coming soon!)
Our Carol a Day project
Our other project for this December has been to make new video recordings of some of our Advent and Christmas carols. We’re calling it A Carol A Day, and you can find our new videos on our YouTube channel or on our Facebook page, or by searching on Facebook for the hashtag #ACarolADay.
It’s not too late to book us for your holiday event
We still have a limited amount of availability for this holiday season. If you’re looking for last minute holiday music for your event, it’s worth contacting us to see if we have a space in our calendar!
Since 2012, we’ve supported the Salvation Army in the San Francisco Bay Area by playing our handbell duets during their annual Red Kettle campaign. Now that we’re no longer living in California, we’re pleased to be able to help with the fundraising at the Red Kettle here in Holland, Michigan instead.
At the Salvation Army Red Kettle in Mountain View, California last year
This holiday season, we’ll be playing Christmas carols and holiday music at D&W Fresh Market. The store is located at 50 Douglas Ave, Holland, MI 49424. We’ll be there between 10:00am and 12:00pm on the following dates:
Friday, November 18
Saturday, November 26
Wednesday, November 30
Monday, December 5
Thursday, December 15
Tuesday, December 20
Do you ever get fed up with the sound of the Salvation Army bell ringers? We’ll be playing real Christmas music – carols and traditional tunes from all over the world. It’s a little different from the usual sound you hear in stores at this time of year!
We hope you’ll drop by if you’re shopping for groceries at that time. Please help the Salvation Army provide food, shelter and social services to those in need throughout the year. Contact us here or on our Facebook page if you have any questions!
Would you like to book a handbell performance for the 2016 Christmas and holiday season?
Handbells can bring a magical and festive atmosphere to any Christmas or holiday event. We can give a seasonal performance of carols and holiday music, or provide background music to add that special, welcoming touch to your corporate event, community group celebration, winter wedding, or holiday gathering. Nothing says Christmas quite as well as the traditional sound of English handbells. Our duet performances can bring the sounds of the season to hotel lobbies, department stores, boutiques, community events and parties. As a handbell duo, we take us less room than a traditional handbell choir. We bring everything we need with us, and you won’t need to worry about how to fit a line of tables into your venue!
The 2016 Christmas and holiday season is approaching, and this year we’re in a new location! Christmas in Michigan is going to be very different from our previous Christmases in California and England. We’re expecting to do some driving through the snow this year!
If you’d like to find out more, please look at our list of Christmas and holiday music and our photos. Contact us to request our current fee schedule, ask questions, and book us for your Christmas event this year!
Here’s a little video of our warm-up session at the Chapel of the Chimes, Oakland, where we played duets at their Annual Night of Remembrance on December 9th. Apologies for the background noise (which does improve slightly as the video goes on). We made this recording while people were running around, setting everything up for the evening’s event.
We enjoy playing our handbell duets at the Chapel of the Chimes. It’s a beautiful building, and this annual event is always enjoyable and moving.
Nearly at the end of our holiday performances
We’re coming to the end of our Christmas and holiday performances now. We’ll be performing at a private holiday party on Saturday. Afterwards, we’ll be playing at the Sundar Shadi Holiday Display in El Cerrito, returning for a second performance on December 23rd. The Holiday Display is an outdoor event, and we can’t play our handbells in the rain. Please keep an eye on our Facebook page for any changes, postponements or cancellations in the event of bad weather.
Would you like to book us for a holiday event?
Perhaps it’s too late to book us for a holiday event this year, but it’s never too early to plan for next year! If you’re organising a Christmas event, and you’d like to consider handbell music, please get in touch with us!
It’s been another busy week of handbell duet performances for us! We played at the Salvation Army Kettle here in Mountain View, and at fun holiday events in Palo Alto and Los Altos. We also had another opportunity to play our handbells at the Annual Night of Remembrance at the Chapel of the Chimes in Oakland.
Have we mentioned how much we love playing handbells at the Chapel of the Chimes? The Night of Remembrance is always a very special evening. People gather together to remember loved ones who are no longer with us, and to light candles and celebrate lives. The building itself is a beautiful place. It has Gothic-style architecture and intricate stonework that reminds Carla of much older churches and cathedrals in England.
There’s also a Christmas tree that looks like this:
We played two pieces during the service itself: The Water is Wide (also known as The Gift of Love) and Moreton Bay. Then we moved our bells to the area beside the beautiful Christmas tree. There, we played a selection of Christmas carols and holiday music while guests enjoyed refreshments.
Did we mention the spectacular Christmas tree?
More holiday performances ahead!
Our weekend will continue with performances at the German Christmas Market in Mountain View. We’re also looking forward to our concert with VoiceWorks in Redwood City tomorrow. And on Monday, we’ll be taking a nap – unless another booking arrives! Yes, we’re still available for last-minute bookings in the run-up to Christmas. Contact us if you’d like to book us for your event!
We’re enjoying the run-up to Christmas, and there are more holiday performances to come!
We spent last weekend at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. We played our handbell duets before and after the Pacific Ballet Academy’s performances of The Nutcracker. It was fun to receive such a warm welcome from so many people who recognised us from previous years! For us, this was the perfect opportunity to share some of our 8-bell Nutcracker pieces, easing gently into a selection of Advent, Christmas and holiday music.
On Tuesday afternoon we played our first session at the Salvation Army Red Kettle, here in Mountain View. We played duets for two hours, and people gave generously to help local people at Christmas and throughout the year.
Don’t miss our concert with VoiceWorks!
On Wednesday we went to Redwood City to rehearse with VoiceWorks for our shared concert on December 13th. It’s going to be a fun concert!
On Thursday afternoon we had a delightfully festive time playing Christmas carols at the Christmas meeting of a church group in Campbell. An enthusiastic audience is a very good thing. We had eight willing volunteers for our “have-a-go” session, playing Jingle Bells on handchimes. We very much enjoyed our visit, and appreciated the warm welcome we received.
On Thursday evening, we took part in the Kara Candlelight Service of Remembrance in Palo Alto. This is an annual event, and is always an emotional and moving evening.
Friday morning started early for us, with a trip to Palo Alto for a performance at a private meeting/holiday celebration there. We arrived early and spent a fun half-hour looking around the shops in chilly downtown Palo Alto.
We had a great time (and lovely, much-needed coffee and breakfast) at this event. Audience members asked us some interesting questions about our bells and music. Handbell music always seems to get people into the holiday spirit, even quite early in the morning at the start of a busy working day!
Next week’s events
Next week will bring another session at the Salvation Army Red Kettle. There will also be private holiday events in Palo Alto and Los Altos. We’ll be playing duets at the Chapel of the Chimes, Oakland, and at our concert with VoiceWorks in Redwood City.
Let the Merry Bells Ring! We’re looking forward to presenting this holiday concert with VoiceWorks in Redwood City. The choirs will be singing, our bells will be ringing, and we’ll all be celebrating the sounds of the season with carols and wintry holiday music.
VoiceWorks is a community choir of young voices, directed by Catherine Doyle. Their music will be accompanied by pianists Leslie Chang, Brian Connor and Russell Green. We’ll be adding specially-arranged handbell parts to some of the choir pieces for this concert, and we’ll also be performing some duets on our own. There’s something very special about the combination of voices and bells at this time of year, and we’re looking forward to being part of this event.
It’s all happening at 4:00pm on Sunday, December 13th, at the Unitarian Universal Fellowship of Redwood City, CA 94062. Tickets are $15, or $10 for students or seniors. You can buy your tickets in advance, or at the door. Contact us if you have any questions, and we can put you in touch with the choir director.
We hope to see you at this concert. Let the merry bells ring, voices sing, and celebrate the holiday season in Redwood City!
We’re looking forward to Christmas this year! It’s a busy and fun time of year for us, as we get ready for the upcoming holiday season. We’ve been rehearsing Christmas carols and preparing music for events and performances here in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Handbells at the Salvation Army Kettle
We’ll be starting December with two sessions at the Salvation Army Red Kettle at Nob Hill Foods in Mountain View. We’ll be playing our duets there between 1:00pm and 3:00pm on December 1st, and between 3:00pm and 5:00pm on December 7th.
The Kara Annual Candlelight Service of Remembrance
We’ll be at the Kara Annual Candlelight Service of Remembrance on December 3rd. This will be the third year we’ve taken part in this very special event in Palo Alto. Members of the community are invited to join together to remember loved ones and significant others who have died. It’s a non-denominational service open to all.
Earlier that day, we’ll be taking our bells and handchimes to a private event in Campbell. We’ll be playing duets there, and leading a “have a go” session on chimes. The following morning we’ll be playing a selection of holiday pieces at a breakfast meeting in Palo Alto.
Chapel of the Chimes Night of Remembrance
We’ll be at the annual Night of Remembrance at the Chapel of the Chimes in Oakland on December 9th, playing duets as candles are lit in memory of loved ones who have passed away.
A busy weekend at the German Holiday Market and VoiceWorks concert
Saturday 12th December will be a busy day for us as we play duets at the German Holiday Market here in Mountain View, organized by the German International School of Silicon Valley. This will be our third year at this fun and festive event. In the evening, we’ll be heading to Los Altos to play holiday music at a private event there.
On Sunday 13th, we’ll be performing in a shared concert with VoiceWorks, in Redwood City. We’ve been enjoying working with this group, and are looking forward to presenting a festive program of holiday music featuring bells and voices. More information will be coming soon!
Handbell duets at the Sundar Shadi Holiday Display
On December 19th and 23rd, we’ll be playing our duets at the Sundar Shadi Holiday Display in El Cerrito. This is one of the highlights of our holiday season, and if you’re anywhere near El Cerrito, you should definitely take time to visit the display this December!
For more information about any of the above events and performances, please look at our Facebook page, or contact us. It’s not too late to book us to play handbell duets at your own holiday event, so get in touch if you’d like to!
