April 1, 2020

New Handbell Music – My Song is Love Unknown

Our 8-bell music has recently been described as “perfect arrangements for these weird times”. That made us smile! We’re thankful to everyone who’s continued to purchase music from us at a time when many handbell groups are unable to rehearse.

We recently shared a rehearsal video of My Song is Love Unknown on our Facebook page. Several people asked if the arrangement would soon be published – so here it is!

More information about Choraegus handbell music

Sheet music for My Song is Love Unknown is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus.

As always, we recommend that you read the licensing agreement before buying music from us, especially if this is your first time downloading music from Choraegus. Please also 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 this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to four copies for your handbell group, with permission for performance and live-streaming as part of a worship service.

More Lent and Easter handbell music

If you’re interested in other 8-bell music suitable for Lent, Easter and Holy Week, we have a list of other hymn suggestions, and many of these pieces are also available on Choraegus.

Any questions?

If you have any 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!

February 27, 2020

Our 4th Surprisingly-Easy 8-Bell Hymn Collection

Some of our most popular 8-bell titles are the Surprisingly-Easy hymn arrangements. We’re pleased to announce the arrival of our 4th Surprisingly-Easy 8-Bell Hymn Collection!

We refer to our Surprisingly-Easy arrangements as “All of the music, but without the twiddly bits” If you’re looking for some new handbell pieces to enhance your worship service, but you don’t want them to take too long to learn, this collection could be the answer. When you’re part of a duo, trio or quartet, or your handbell choir is enthusiastic but small in number, these hymns could be what you’re looking for. If your handbell ensemble takes a break during the summer, but there are people who say that they wish they could keep going – these arrangements will help to keep even the most overenthusiastic musicians occupied!

What’s included in this 8-bell hymn collection?

The hymns included in this fourth collection are:

Abide with Me
Come, Christians, Join to Sing
I Sing the Mighty Power of God
In the Garden
My Faith Looks Up to Thee
We Gather Together
What a Friend We Have in Jesus

If you’d like to play any of these arrangements, sheet music for the collection and each individual title is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus, our music site.

More information about Choraegus downloadable handbell music

As always, we strongly recommend that you read the licensing agreement before buying music from us. Please also 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 eight-bell arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to four copies for your handbell group. If you haven’t bought music from Choraegus before, we recommend our step-by-step guide!

There are more Surprisingly-Easy 8-Bell Collections available from Choraegus, as well as our standard eight-bell arrangements – some more challenging than others.

Do you have questions for us?

If you have any questions about buying or playing our music, please check our Frequently-Asked Questions first. If you don’t find the answer you’re looking for, please get in touch with us, and we’ll be happy to help.

8-bell hymn collection — Also available from Choraegus – binder covers for our eight-bell music!

February 13, 2020

New Handbell Music – Nearer, My God, to Thee

Here’s the latest addition to our 8-bell repertoire; the beautiful 19-century hymn Nearer, My God, to Thee (hymn tune BETHANY).

This arrangement is suitable for 2-4 ringers. We demonstrate it as a 4-in-hand duet, but four ringers could also play it holding two bells each.

Where to find the sheet music

If you’d like to play Nearer, My God, to Thee, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus, our music site.

As always, we recommend that you read the licensing agreement before buying music from us. If this is your first time making a purchase from Choraegus, we recommend our step-by-step guide! We designed this guide with pictures, to make the purchase and download process (we hope) a stress-free experience.

Choraegus 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 this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to four copies for your handbell group.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about purchasing or playing 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 be happy to help. We hope you’ll enjoy playing our music!

February 6, 2020

New Handbell Music – Beach Spring – for 8 Bells

Here’s one of our new favorite 8-bell arrangements – Beach Spring – for 8 bells. Many popular hymn texts have been set to this tune. For example, Come Ye Sinners Poor and Needy, Lord Whose Love Through Humble Service and Lord, Dismiss Us With Thy Blessing. It’s a very versatile tune, suitable for services throughout the church calendar.

Our demonstration video was recorded on just our third attempt at playing this piece. It’s less polished than we’d have liked, but the notes are accurate, so it should give you a good idea of how the piece sounds. We had a request to publish this arrangement quickly, but at some point we’ll hope to record a better demonstration video!

Sheet music is available from Choraegus

If you’d like to play Beach Spring for 8 bells, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus, our music site.

As always, we recommend that you read the licensing agreement before buying music from us. If this is your first time purchasing Choraegus music, we also recommend our step-by-step guide! Please also 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 this arrangement gives you permission to print and maintain up to four copies for your handbell group.

We also have a 12-bell arrangement of Beach Spring, available from Choraegus.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about purchasing or playing 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. We hope you’ll enjoy playing our music!

January 16, 2020

FREE Handbell Music – Dona Nobis Pacem, for 8 Bells

Yay! Free handbell music! After our busy holiday season, we were happy to be able to start the new year by working on some brand-new eight-bell music to be published on Choraegus. The first of these new pieces is Dona Nobis Pacem.

The scene outside our window would look so much prettier with some snow!

We’re pleased to offer the sheet music for this piece to you for free, as a thank-you to everyone who has encouraged and supported us in our musical endeavours since we started playing handbells together in 2012. You can find it in the Freebies section of our music site, where there’s also free music for Happy Birthday and Auld Lang Syne. You’ll also find printable covers for anyone who’s storing their 8-bell music in binders.

There’s no obligation to make any other purchase from Choraegus to get the free handbell music. Of course, we hope you’ll take a look at other titles we have to offer, but if you want to grab the free music and go, we don’t mind at all. It’s a good way to try our eight-bell music without having to spend any money! Dona Nobis Pacem would also be very suitable for playing as a quartet; useful for those times when you’re working with less than a full handbell choir.

Instructions for downloading the free handbell music

To get your free sheet music, add it to your cart on the Choraegus site, and click on the yellow “Check out with PayPal” button. Enter your details, and click “Confirm Order” (there’s no need to click on the PayPal button a second time). Then check your email inbox! If the download link doesn’t arrive, check your spam folder, and it might be there.

As always, we recommend that you read the licensing agreement before buying music from us (or claiming your free music), especially if this is your first time downloading music from Choraegus. You won’t receive anything in the mail, and will be responsible for printing your own music.

Any questions?

If you have any 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!

March 3, 2019

New 12-Bell Music – Give Me Jesus

Larry’s been writing a lot of new music in recent weeks, as he continues his recovery from surgery. His son J.C. recently came to visit (currently studying in Alabama). We enjoyed an opportunity to play through a few of the new 12-bell titles. The first to be available from Choraegus is the African-American spiritual Give Me Jesus.

New 12-bell music – Give Me Jesus

This piece proved not to be too difficult for the three of us to play, and would also work for six people with two bells each, of course. The video was recorded on only our third attempt at playing the piece – so it’s not perfect, but you’ll get a good idea of how it sounds. We’re playing the C5 to G6 version, but (as with all our 12-bell pieces) it’s also available for F5 to C7.

Would you like to play Give Me Jesus?

If you’d like to play this piece, the sheet music is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. If you’re new to buying Choraegus handbell music, we recommend our step-by-step guide. We designed this to keep the buying process as stress-free as possible!

Any questions?

If you have any questions about buying or playing our music, please get in touch with us and we’ll do our best to help. We also have a list of Frequently-Asked Questions!

We hope you’ll enjoy playing this piece. More 12-bell arrangements will be coming soon!

February 17, 2019

Kelvingrove – 2-3 Octave Handbell Music

Larry’s latest 2-3 octave handbell arrangement is the traditional Scottish tune Kelvingrove. This popular traditional melody was first published in The Harp of Kenfrewshire, a collection of songs published in Scotland around 1820. The author’s name is given as John Sim.

“Let us haste to Kelvin Grove, bonnie lassie, O,
Through its mazes let us rove, bonnie lassie, O:
Where the rose in all her pride,
Paints the hollow dingle side,
Where the midnight fairies glide, bonnie lassie, O.”

Kelvingrove as church music

In recent years, the Kelvingrove tune has become popular in churches, with the title Will You Come and Follow Me? (The Summons) and lyrics written in 1987 by John L. Bell and Graham A. Maule. Here’s a video by the Carillon Choir at Third Reformed Church of Holland, Michigan:

Would you like to play Kelvingrove?

This arrangement of Kelvingrove is for 2-3 octaves of handbells. If you’d like to play it, the sheet music is available to purchase from Choraegus.

If you haven’t purchased music from Choraegus before, we recommend reading our step-by-step guide. We designed this in an attempt to make the purchasing process as stress-free as possible!

Please note that Choraegus handbell music will come to you as a digital download; a PDF file. You’ll be responsible for printing your own sheet music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. The advantage of having downloadable sheet music is not having to wait to receive it. You can make your purchase, print out the music, and be ready to start rehearsing with your handbell choir! For 2-3 octave handbell music, your purchase (pay once only) entitles you to print and maintain up to 15 copies for your group.

Any questions?

Please let us know if you have any questions, and we’ll be happy to help!

July 27, 2018

New Music for Handbells – I Vow To Thee, My Country

“I vow to thee my country, all earthly things above,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love.
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best.
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.

And there’s another country I’ve heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know.
We may not count her armies, we may not see her king,
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering.
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,
And her ways are ways of gentleness and all her paths are peace.”

I Vow to Thee, My Country is a much-loved British patriotic hymn. Sir Cecil Spring Rice wrote the lyrics, and Gustav Holst set them to music. The melody is adapted from a section of Jupiter from Holst’s orchestral suite The Planets. Nowadays, you might recognise it as the hymn tune THAXTED.

A much-loved patriotic hymn

I Vow to Thee, My Country has strong associations with Remembrance Sunday. Its patriotic text has ensured that it remains popular today. It was sung at the funeral of Sir Winston Churchill in 1965, and at the wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales in 1981. It was also sung at the funeral of the Princess of Wales in 1997, and at the memorial service ten years later. In 1982, Michael Perry wrote an alternative text for the THAXTED melody; O God Beyond All Praising.

We first performed our arrangement of I Vow to Thee, My Country on our last Sunday at Los Altos United Methodist Church, before we moved from California to Michigan. We played it in concert for the first time in Warner Robins, Georgia and again in concert at the Handbell Musicians of America Area 5 Festival on Mackinac Island, and at the recent Area 8 Festival in Omaha, Nebraska. It’s not the easiest of our 8-bell arrangements! The middle section took us a while to learn, and still has the ability to surprise us sometimes. Still, it’s been a fun challenge.

Would you like to play this piece?

If you’d like to play I Vow To Thee, My Country, the sheet music is available for purchase and download from Choraegus. If you haven’t bought music from Choraegus before, we recommend our step-by-step guide. Please also note that our music is designed to be downloaded for you to print at home. You won’t receive anything in the mail. Purchasing this 8-bell arrangement gives you permission to print up to 4 copies for your group; you only need to pay once.

Any questions?

If you have any questions, please check our Frequently-Asked Questions! If you don’t find the answer you’re looking for, please contact us, and we’ll be happy to help!

July 10, 2018

Three Original Larry Sue Handbell Compositions at Area 8 BronzeFest

We had lots of fun with the Area 8 BronzeFest choir at the “Bring It! Ring It!” Festival in Omaha, Nebraska. One of the highlights, for us, was having the opportunity to hear three of Larry’s original handbell compositions performed live; two of them for the first time ever!

Our thanks go to the members of the HMA Area 8 BronzeFest Ensemble for all the hard work they put in before the event, so that we could make the most of our limited rehearsal time together. Here are the three original compositions that were performed at the concert:

A Minor Crash

This piece was inspired by a certain sign that we used to drive past when we were living in California, and it’s fun to play! It’s not crazy-difficult either; the rhythms are easy to pick up, and everyone seemed to enjoy it – including the bass ringers! The cajon part was written and performed by Alex Guebert.

Rescue

“Rescue does not occur only through great violence and clamor;
sometimes it is a candle seen from the midst of terrible darkness”.

Larry wrote this piece fairly recently, and dedicated it to Carla. We didn’t manage to get a recording from the BronzeFest concert performance, but this “work in progress” rehearsal video will give you a good idea of how it sounds. This sensitive piece was well received at its first performance, and the sheet music is now available from Choraegus.

The Final Crossing

This piece was written in 2015, for the Siskiyou Summit Handbell Conference in Ashland, Oregon, where it received its first performance. There should have been a recording of that performance, but between us we failed to make it happen. Carla pushed the “on” button on the video recorder five minutes before the performance, to make sure it didn’t get forgotten. A minute before the performance, Larry pushed the “on” button, effectively turning off the camera and making sure that there would be no recording. Booooo.

Anyway, we also failed to get a recording from the Area 8 BronzeFest concert. We did manage to get a video of one of the rehearsals, though. There were a few glitches, but you’ll get the idea. Thanks to Lily Acatina, who stepped in to sight-read the trumpet part on keyboard at this rehearsal.

This piece is also available for purchase and download from Choraegus.

Area 8 BronzeFest - Handbell Festival — BronzeFest at the HMA Area 8 Festival in Omaha, Nebraska – June 2018

May 2, 2018

New Music for Handbells – Morning Song

Our latest 8-bell arrangement is the beautiful hymn tune Morning Song. You might also know it as The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns.

We recently performed this piece for the first time at the opening concert for the Handbell Musicians of America Area 5 Spring Festival on Mackinac Island. We’ll be sharing photos and information about that event soon!

Here’s a video of us, recorded a few months ago, rehearsing this piece for the concert:

We’ve enjoyed working on this piece, and think it’s set to become one of our favorites for playing in church. If you’d like to play Morning Song, the sheet music is available for purchase and download from Choraegus.

More information about buying handbell music from Choraegus

Choraegus handbell music is designed to be downloaded and printed at home. That means you’ll be responsible for the printing, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. If you haven’t purchased our handbell music before, we recommend our step-by-step guide. We designed this to help make the process stress-free!

Purchasing this 8-bell piece gives you permission to print up to 4 copies for your group. You only need to pay once, so please don’t pay for more copies than you need! See our licensing agreement for more details.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about buying or playing our handbell music, please check our Frequently-Asked Questions first. If you don’t find the answers you need, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help!