Category Archives: Music for Funeral and Memorial Services

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!

I Vow to Thee My Country - handbells

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

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!

Morning Song - 8-bell handbells
On our way to Grand Hotel for the Handbell Musicians of America Area 5 Festival!

New 12-Bell Music – Thou Hidden Source of Calm Repose

“Thou hidden source of calm repose,
thou all-sufficient love divine,
my help and refuge from my foes,
secure i am, if thou art mine:
and lo, from sin, and grief, and shame,
I hide me, Jesus, in thy name.”

This is an 18th century hymn by Charles Wesley. We hadn’t heard it until very recently! The tune is ST PETERSBURG. If you’re looking for an unusual hymn for your worship service, this could work well. It’s suitable for 3-6 ringers, and it’s available in two bell ranges – either C5-G6 or F5-C7.

Thanks to J.C for joining us for this recording during his recent visit to Michigan!

Would you like to play this arrangement?

Sheet music for this new 12-bell arrangement is available to purchase and download from Choraegus. You only need to pay once, and you can print up to 6 copies for your group.

We ask you to read our licensing agreement, and if you’re new to buying our music online, we recommend our step-by-step guide.

Any questions?

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



The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, Is Ended – New 8-Bell Music

“The day thou gavest, Lord, is ended
The darkness falls at thy behest;
To thee our morning hymns ascended
Thy praise shall sanctify our rest.

We thank thee that thy Church unsleeping,
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night.”

One of Carla’s all-time favorites, The Day Thou Gavest, is an English hymn. A Cheshire vicar, John Ellerton, wrote it in 1870. The hymn tune is ST CLEMENT. has remained popular in the UK since then.

Here’s our 8-bell arrangement, recorded in Los Altos, California in May 2016, before we moved to Holland, Michigan:

Would you like to play this arrangement?

If you’d like to play The Day Thou Gavest, the music is available for purchase and download from Choraegus.

When you purchase music from Choraegus, please note that it will come to you as a PDF file. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. Your purchase entitles you to print up to 4 copies for your handbell group. Please see our licensing agreement for full details.

If you haven’t bought Choraegus handbell music before, we recommend our step-by-step guide. We designed the guide to take you through the process and make it stress-free!

Any questions?

If you have any questions, you might like to look at our Frequently-Asked Questions. If you don’t find the answers you seek, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help.

The Day Thou Gavest - handbells