Category Archives: Church Music

Come, Thou Almighty King – 16-Bell Music

Come, Thou Almighty King is our newest arrangement for sixteen handbells. We received a request for this piece, and recorded the demonstration video after Larry came back from his first radiation treatment. It’s more of a read-through than a performance, but you should get the idea of how the piece could sound with the benefit of more rehearsal time!

Come, Thou Almighty King is sung to the ITALIAN HYMN tune, written in 1769. This arrangement is the most straightforward (so far) of all our 16-bell arrangements. It contains no bell changes, and needs no bell-sharing. There are no techniques that require tables. Up to 8 ringers could play it from music stands, even with social distancing.

If you’d like to play Come, Thou Almighty King, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. Other 16-bell music is also available. If you don’t see the title you’re looking for, you’re always welcome to suggest a piece you’d like to play. Larry is writing new music all the time!

More information (the small print)

Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to eight copies for your handbell group. Don’t pay for more copies than you need! Purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details. In addition, please mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our sheet music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the information you need, and we’ll be happy to help!

Come, Thou Almighty King - 16-bell

The Skye Boat Song – New 12-Bell Music

The Skye Boat Song is a 19th century Scottish tune. We recently introduced an arrangement for 8 handbells and piano. Here’s a new 12-bell arrangement that’s fun to play too. This one starts very simply, then moves on to a flowing arpeggio section. Even though the piece started life as a secular song, the tune is also used in church as the setting for Spirit of God, Unseen as the Wind, written by Margaret Old. People have also told us that this tune is the theme tune for the TV series Outlander, which we haven’t yet seen!

We enjoyed recording this arrangement with just the two of us:

12-bell music is great for socially-distanced ringing!

As with all Choraegus 12-bell arrangements, this piece has no bell-sharing, and no techniques that need tables or foam. It could be played by 3-6 ringers, playing from music stands. Two versions are available – either using bells C5-G6 (as in our demo video), or using F5-C7.

Where to get the sheet music

If you’d like to play The Skye Boat Song, you’ll find the sheet music on Choraegus, our music site. Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to six copies for your handbell group – so you only need to pay once. Your purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details. Please remember to mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs, so you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the answers you need, and we’ll be happy to help!

Skye Boat Song handbells

Lift High the Cross (CRUCIFER) – for Handbells and Piano

Lift High the Cross is a 19th century English hymn. The tune used here is CRUCIFER, written in 1916 by Sydney H. Nicholson. It’s a popular hymn for Holy Week and Easter, and our new 8-bell arrangement is straightforward and fun to play.

People sometimes ask us how they can use 8-bell music when they have more than 4 ringers in their handbell choir. We suggest that if handchimes are available, the piece could be doubled on bells and chimes! We decided to demonstrate this in our latest video:

Played like this, doubled on handbells and handchimes, up to 8 ringers could be kept busy with just 2 bells or chimes each. Of course, if you only have 2-4 ringers, you won’t need to double anything, and the piece can just be played in the usual way. But this was a fun experiment!

How to get the sheet music:

If you’d like to play Lift High the Cross, the sheet music is available to purchase and download from Choraegus. We also have an mp3 piano accompaniment track, available to purchase separately if you don’t have a willing accompanist. It’s also useful if you want to rehearse at home.

The all-important “small print”

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. Purchasing an 8-bell arrangement allows you to print and maintain up to four copies for your handbell group (plus the accompaniment score). Purchase also gives permission for recording, broadcasting, live-streaming and sharing on video-sharing sites and social media. See our licensing agreement for full details. Please remember to mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites and social media, and in any printed materials such as church service bulletins.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide. We designed this to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the answers you need, and we’ll do what we can to help!

Lift High the Cross 8-bell

16-Bell Music – Holy, Holy, Holy – Played as a Duet

16-bell music has been a fairly recent recording project for us. It’s been an exciting challenge to put together some new demonstration videos.

Holy, Holy, Holy is our latest arrangement for sixteen handbells. We enjoyed recording this piece as a duet project, and we love how pretty the snow looks in the background!

This arrangement is straightforward to play, and contains no bell changes and no accidentals to pick up mid-piece. There are no techniques that require tables, so it’s suitable for a socially-distanced group to play from music stands.

If you’d like to play Holy, Holy, Holy, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. Other 16-bell music is also available. If you don’t see the title you’re looking for, please let us know, and we’ll see what we can do!

More information (the small print)

Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to eight copies for your handbell group. Don’t pay for more copies than you need! Purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details. In addition, please mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our sheet music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs, so you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the information you need, and we’ll do what we can to help!

New 6-Bell Music – When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

Here’s some new 6-bell music to start the new year!

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross is a setting of the HAMBURG hymn tune, for six handbells with piano accompaniment. The arrangement is suitable to be played as a duet, or by a trio of ringers playing two bells each. It does seem early to be thinking about music for Lent, Holy Week and Easter, but we know how quickly the weeks and months go by!

“When I survey the wondrous cross
on which the Prince of glory died,
my richest gain I count but loss,
and pour contempt on all my pride.”

As with all our 6-bell arrangements, this piece involves no bell changes, no picking-up of accidentals mid-piece, and no shared bells. Perfect for social distancing!

If you’d like to play When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus, our music site. An mp3 accompaniment track is also available to purchase separately. This can be useful if you want to rehearse at home without a pianist, or if you don’t have an accompanist available for your worship service.

More information (the small print)

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. Purchasing a 6-bell arrangement allows you to print and maintain up to three copies for your handbell group (plus the accompaniment score). Purchase also gives permission for recording, broadcasting, live-streaming and sharing on video-sharing sites and social media. See our licensing agreement for full details. Please remember to mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites and social media, and in any printed materials.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide. We designed this to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the answers you need, and we’ll do what we can to help!

6-bell music - When I Survey the Wondrous for handbells

Away in a Manger – 12-bell Arrangement Played as a Duet

Here’s another demonstration video of a 12-bell piece – Away in a Manger.

We recorded this video in the same way as we made our other recent 12- and 16-bell projects – in two separate parts. This arrangement has no bell-sharing, no accidentals, and no need for tables, which makes it particularly suitable for a small group of socially-distanced musicians. It could be played by 3-6 ringers, using spaced-apart music stands, and two versions are available – either using bells C5-G6 (as in our demo video), or using F5-C7.

Would you like to play this piece?

If you’d like to play Away in a Manger, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to six copies for your handbell group – so you only need to pay once. Your purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details, and please remember to mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs, so you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the answers you need, and we’ll do what we can to help!

From a Distant Home – 16-Bell Music Played As a Duet

From a Distant Home is a lively Puerto Rican carol. It was a fun 16-bell recording project for us! This is a versatile arrangement, suitable for Christmas or Epiphany. We played it using our usual 4-in-hand technique, but it could be played by up to eight people.

“From a distant home the Savior we come seeking,
using as our guide the star so brightly beaming.

Lovely eastern star that tells us of God’s morning,
heaven’s wondrous light, O never cease thy shining!
Glory in the highest to the Son of Heaven,
and upon the earth be peace and love to all.“

If you’d like to play From a Distant Home, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. 

Important information (the small print)

Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to eight copies for your handbell group – so you only need to pay once. Purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details. Please remember to mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs, so you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the answers you need, and we’ll do what we can to help!

From a Distant Home - handbells

Angels from the Realms of Glory – 12-Bell Music Played as a Duet

Here’s another demonstration video of a 12-bell piece – Angels from the Realms of Glory.

This video was recorded in the same way as our other recent 12- and 16-bell projects – in two separate parts. We recorded this video in the evening – half just before dark, and half just after, as you can see from the two sides of the recording!

This arrangement has no bell-sharing and no accidentals, making it particularly suitable for a small group of socially-distanced musicians. There’s no need for tables, so the arrangement can be played by 3-6 ringers using spaced-apart music stands. Two versions are available – either using bells C5-G6 (as in our demo video), or using F5-C7.

If you’d like to play Angels from the Realms of Glory, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to six copies for your handbell group – so you only need to pay once. Purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details, and please remember to mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

Questions about our music? Please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. If you don’t find the answers you need, please contact us, and we’ll do what we can to help!

Angels from the Realms of Glory - 12-bell Christmas

The First Nowell – 16-Bell Music Played as a Duet

The First Nowell is our newest recording project. We recently put together a video of our 12-bell arrangement of the Christmas Carol As With Gladness Men of Old. This went well, so we were encouraged to attempt a 16-bell arrangement!

We chose The First Nowell, and this is the finished product:

How we made our “clone” video

We’ve been impressed by the creative video-editing we’ve seen from various handbell musicians in recent months. Our way of making this video was fairly low-tech in comparison! As there are only two of us, we knew we’d have to record the piece in two halves. First, we looked at the music score together and decided which two sets of bells were the most likely to cover most of the notes without breaks. Our aim was to keep the piece at a steady tempo. For this piece, we recorded the middle eight bells first.

The initial recording went very well, and we were able to use our first attempt at recording the middle eight bells. Next, we downloaded the video/music file from the camera card. When it was safely downloaded onto a laptop, we replayed the audio track at a low volume. We played the lowest-four and highest-four bells along with the track. Using this method meant that we didn’t need to use headphones/earbuds. It took us three attempts to play the outside pairs of bells all the way through without any trip-ups, but we got there eventually!

The two videos were then put together “side by side” in iMovie.

This has proved to be a really interesting experience for us! We have a pile of 12- and 16-bell music waiting to be recorded, so we’re planning to make a lot more of these videos. It will be a good use of our time at home, since our Christmas performance calendar is looking rather empty!

Would you like to play The First Nowell?

If you’d like to play The First Nowell, you can download the sheet music from Choraegus. Two versions are available – each for a different range of bells. We played the C5-D7 version, but it’s also available in the range Bb4-C7. The arrangement needs no bell-sharing or picking-up of accidentals during the piece, and no techniques requiring tables. For this reason, it’s particularly suitable for a small group of socially-distanced musicians using music stands.

Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to eight copies for your handbell group – so you only need to pay once. Purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details. Please mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs, so you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the answers you need, and we’ll do what we can to help!

16-bell music - The First Nowell for handbells

New 12-Bell Christmas Music – As With Gladness Men of Old

Here’s a 12-bell Christmas carol arrangement of As With Gladness Men of Old. The hymn tune DIX is also used as one of the settings for For the Beauty of the Earth.

Recording a 12-bell piece with just the two of us

Our demonstration video was our first attempt at recording a 12-bell piece during a time of COVID-19 and social distancing. We didn’t have a third person to join us for a trio, so our best option was to play all the bells ourselves, and put two videos together. It’s not perfect (and we hope to improve as we get used to doing this!), but you’ll get the idea of how the music should sound.

Information about playing this piece

This arrangement is straightforward to play, and has no bell-sharing, no accidentals, and no need for tables. It’s particularly suitable for a small group of socially-distanced musicians, and can be played by 3-6 ringers. Two versions are available – either using bells C5-G6 (as in our demo video), or using F5-C7.

If you’d like to play As With Gladness Men of Old, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. Purchasing this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to six copies for your handbell group – so you only need to pay once. Purchase also gives permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and video-sharing online. See our licensing agreement for full details, and please remember to mention the title and arranger of the piece on video-sharing sites, social media and any printed materials such as concert programs.

Please note that our music is designed to be downloaded as PDFs, so you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

If you haven’t purchased music online from Choraegus before, you might like to look at our step-by-step guide, designed to help you navigate the purchase and download process in a (we hope!) stress-free way.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. Please contact us if you don’t find the answers you need, and we’ll do what we can to help!

As With Gladness Men of Old - 12-bell Christmas