April 4, 2022

A Celebration of Our Life – for Handbells

Larry wrote A Celebration of Our Life for a California couple, in celebration of their 30th wedding anniversary in 2008. Their church’s handbell choir played it when they renewed their vows. As we didn’t have a video, we thought it was about time we made one!

About A Celebration of Our Life

(From Choraegus): Fun abounds in this piece, as it describes parts of their story. For instance:

The introductory melody is both thirty beats long and thirty notes long (not counting ties), and it also has three tenuti (three ten.’s = 30!)
Three children are represented as the lines in a three-voice fugue. This fugal melody also appears in the last section as a countermelody.
There’s a bit of theory geek stuff in the final chord sequences:
– In bars 87 and 88: VII + vi + VII + VII + ii + I = 30
– In bars 89 and 90: ii * iii * V * I = 30
– and in bars 91 and 92 (not counting the suspended 4th): VI * V * I = 30

Apart from all that “fun”, the piece is a challenging Level 4, written for 5 octaves of handbells and 3 octaves of handchimes. Sheet music for this arrangement is available to purchase and download from Choraegus. You can either purchase an individual copy (useful for massed ringing events, or for preview), or purchase the full choir license. Purchase of the full choir license gives you our no-fuss permission to print up to 15 copies for your group.

How to get the music

Your purchase of the full-choir license also gives permission for you to perform, broadcast and live-stream this piece as part of a concert or worship service without the need for any additional license or fee, although we ask you to credit the composer (Larry Sue) and publisher (Choraegus) in any printed media such as concert programs, and online (in video descriptions). See our licensing agreement for full details. We appreciate your help in spreading the word about Choraegus handbell music. If you record a video of your group playing any of our pieces, we’d love to see it. You’re welcome to share it with us on our Facebook page too!

Choraegus handbell music is designed to come to you as a PDF file, which you’ll need to download. 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, we recommend our step-by-step guide. We designed this guide 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.

March 7, 2022

Handbell Music about Snow!

Snow is a big feature of winter in Michigan. Since we moved here in 2016, we’ve grown to love waking up to snow-covered views from our windows, and having to go outside and shovel the driveway. Larry’s become an expert at using the snowblower, and has even written some handbell music about snow!

We’ve just gone through the time of year sometimes referred to as “Fool’s Spring” here. Fool’s Spring is generally followed by Second Winter. We’ve had a couple of weeks with the sun attempting to shine through the clouds, and the snow has been melting away, leaving us with just the occasional patch of ice, and those murky-looking snow-mountains that accumulate in local parking lots. Just when we start to think that warmer weather really is here to stay… an overnight fall of snow reminds us that winter’s not over yet!

Rather than make another video of the two of us playing this 3-octave handbell piece, we thought we’d show you some snowy scenes from where we live. If you live in a warmer climate and you’ve never driven through snow, our video will give you a view from the passenger seat!

More information about Snow

Snow is for 3 octaves of handbells, Level 1+. Sheet music for this original composition is available to purchase and download from Choraegus. You can either purchase an individual copy (useful for massed ringing events, or for preview), or purchase the full choir license. Purchase of the full choir license gives you our no-fuss permission to print up to 15 copies for your group.

Choraegus handbell music is designed to come to you as a PDF file, which you’ll need to download. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

More Choraegus handbell music about snow and winter weather

Good King Wenceslas – an 8-bell challenge for Christmas!

Hoe Leit dit Kindeke (Cold is this Little Child) – a chilly Dutch carol, arranged for 8 handbells

In the Bleak Midwinter – this English carol arrangement is available for 8 or 12 handbells

Jingle Bells – dashing through the snow… for 8 handbells with piano accompaniment

See, Amid the Winter’s Snow – an 8-bell arrangement of this traditional English carol

The Snow Lay on the Ground – another lively English carol

‘Twas in the Moon of Wintertime – the Huron Carol, currently available in two 8-bell versions, but coming soon for full choir!

Winter Dance – a 5-octave, Level 4 arrangement of Seiichi Kyoda’s wonderful, wintry piece

Any questions?

If you have any questions about our music, please start by reading our Frequently-Asked Questions. If someone has asked us a question even once, it will be there, along with the answer. Please contact us if you don’t find the information you need, and we’ll be happy to help.

February 20, 2022

Rescue – an Original Handbell Composition

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

Here’s a new video of an original handbell composition that’s particularly special to us. Larry wrote this piece in 2018, and dedicated it to Carla. Rescue was performed for the first time in that same year, by the BronzeFest Choir at the Handbell Musicians of America Area 8 Conference. We didn’t manage to get a video of the final concert performance, so we recently decided to make a recording of our own.

More information about Rescue

Rescue is for 3-7 octaves of handbells, with optional 3 octaves of handchimes. It’s a Level 3 piece, and it could be made more straightforward by playing the whole piece with bells only.

Would you like to play this piece?

Sheet music for this original composition for handbells is available to purchase and download from Choraegus. You can either purchase an individual copy (useful for massed ringing events, or for preview), or purchase the full choir license. Purchase of the full choir license gives you our no-fuss permission to print up to 15 copies for your group.

Your purchase of the full-choir license also gives permission for you to perform, broadcast and live-stream this piece as part of a concert or worship service without the need for any additional license or fee, although we ask you to credit the arranger (Larry Sue) and publisher (Choraegus) in any printed media such as concert programs, and online (in video descriptions). See our licensing agreement for full details. We appreciate your help in spreading the word about Choraegus handbell music. If you record a video of your group playing any of our pieces, we’d love to see it. You’re welcome to share it with us on our Facebook page too!

Choraegus handbell music is designed to come to you as a PDF file, which you’ll need to download. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

Any questions?

February 14, 2022

Five – an Original Composition for Handbells

We made another 5-octave handbell video! Five is an original composition for handbells, written in celebration of our 5th wedding anniversary, back in 2017.

This piece has an interesting story, because Larry wrote it as a surprise anniversary gift. He shared the sheet music with the Carillon Choir at Third Reformed Church here in Holland, and they played it for the first time during one of the morning services. It was such a romantic and sweet gesture. As it’s an original composition, it was easy to turn the music into a nice prelude for the service.

We didn’t get a video of the whole piece that morning, and we decided a couple of weeks ago that it was time to record it ourselves. We published the video in time for Valentine’s Day!

The fun thing about Five is that there are secret 5s in the music – so it’s a bit of a treasure hunt – starting with the number of octaves and the key signatures, of course. Larry didn’t make it a Level 5 piece, though; it’s a Level 2+, and quite straightforward to play.

Would you like to play this piece?

Your purchase of the full-choir license also gives permission for you to perform, broadcast and live-stream this piece as part of a concert or worship service without the need for any additional license or fee, although we ask you to credit the arranger (Larry Sue) and publisher (Choraegus) in any printed media such as concert programs, and online (in video descriptions). See our licensing agreement for full details. We appreciate your help in spreading the word about Choraegus handbell music. If you record a video of your group playing any of our pieces, we’d love to see it. You’re welcome to share it with us on our Facebook page too!

Choraegus handbell music is designed to come to you as a PDF file, which you’ll need to download. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

Any questions?

Original composition for handbells - by Larry Sue

February 3, 2022

Level 1 Handbell Music – Newness

We had a request for some Level 1 handbell music – so here’s an update to our recent post about Newness.

Newness is an original composition for 3 or 5 octaves of handbells. It’s turning out to be a versatile piece! If you play it without the handchimes, it’s around Level 2 in difficulty. It’s fairly straightforward, but with a running 8th note/quaver line. If you add the optional handchime part, the challenge level is taken up a notch for several of the bell assignments. Here it is, played in full – the 5-octave version:

Now available in a Level 1 version!

By request, Newness is now available in a simplified, Level 1, version! The 8th note/quaver runs are gone, and the whole piece has nothing smaller than quarter notes/crotchets to deal with. We didn’t make another video for this version, but the audio track is below for you to listen to. As it’s an original composition, there’s also no problem if your handbell choir needs to play it more slowly than we did.

We’ll be looking to see if we can get some more Level 1 handbell music arranged for 3-5 octave handbell choirs. In the meantime, there’s a lot more spring handbell music available from Choraegus, including titles for Lent and Easter – so take a look, and we hope you’ll find something to interest you!

How to purchase the sheet music

Sheet music for Newness is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. Make sure you select the version you need for your choir. In common with most sellers of downloadable sheet music, we don’t usually offer refunds for files/scores that have already been download – so please choose carefully. You can either purchase an individual copy (useful for massed ringing events, or for preview), or purchase the full choir license. Purchase of the full choir license gives you our no-fuss permission to print up to 15 copies for your group.

Your purchase of the full-choir license also gives permission for you to perform, broadcast and live-stream this piece as part of a concert or worship service without the need for any additional license or fee, although we ask you to credit the arranger (Larry Sue) and publisher (Choraegus) in any printed media such as concert programs, and online (in video descriptions). See our licensing agreement for full details. We appreciate your help in spreading the word about Choraegus handbell music. If you record a video of your group playing any of our pieces, we’d love to see it. You’re welcome to share it with us on our Facebook page!

Choraegus handbell music is designed to come to you as a PDF file, which you’ll need to download. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

Any questions?

January 17, 2022

Newness – Spring Handbell Music

Newness is an original composition for 3 or 5 octaves of handbells. Spring is approaching (although it’s going to take a while, here in Michigan), so we thought the time was right to make a demonstration video of the 5-octave version. If you’re looking for spring handbell music that’s suitable for a secular performance or a worship service, this piece could be an option, and it shouldn’t take too long to learn.

More information about Newness

Newness is for 3 or 5 octaves of handbells, with optional handchimes. If all the notes are played on bells, it’s a Level 2 piece. Adding the handchimes adds an extra challenge for several ringers. We found it helpful to be able to play the chimes as 4-in-hand pairs with the bells. When we recorded this piece on 3 octaves, we played the chimes separately, again as 4-in-hand pairs – so that could be an option too, if you have extra ringers. If in doubt, just play the whole thing on bells only!

There’s a lot more spring handbell music available from Choraegus, including titles for Lent and Easter – so take a look, and we hope you’ll find something to interest you!

How to purchase the sheet music

Sheet music for Newness is available to purchase, download and print from Choraegus. You can either purchase an individual copy (useful for massed ringing events, or for preview), or purchase the full choir license. Purchase of the full choir license gives you our no-fuss permission to print up to 15 copies for your group.

Your purchase also gives permission for you to perform, broadcast and live-stream this piece as part of a concert or worship service without the need for any additional license or fee, although we ask you to credit the arranger (Larry Sue) and publisher (Choraegus) in any printed media such as concert programs, and online (in video descriptions). See our licensing agreement for full details. We appreciate your help in spreading the word about Choraegus handbell music. If you record a video of your group playing any of our pieces, we’d love to see it. You’re welcome to share it with us on our Facebook page!

Choraegus handbell music is designed to come to you as a PDF file, which you’ll need to download. You’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail.

Any questions?

May 24, 2021

Procession and Celebration – for Handbells, 5-7 Octaves

Procession and Celebration is an original composition, commissioned by the Tate family in honor of Shosh Meyer, handbell director at St. Matthew Lutheran Church of Beaverton, Oregon. Shosh has been a friend of ours for some years, and played handbells at our wedding in 2012!

We decided it was time for another 5-octave recording project…. and this one was a fun challenge for us! As with all these “put together in iMovie” videos, we didn’t rehearse this piece beforehand. We didn’t feel entirely confident about playing the whole piece from start to finish, so we started with Procession. We recorded all the parts for that, and then played Celebration. You’ll see the join in the middle of the video. This piece is the most challenging one we’ve attempted with five octaves (so far), and it felt like a daunting task before we started. But we were pleased with how it turned out, and we were surprised how much we enjoyed playing it, particularly those fast runs in Celebration!

It’s always interesting how every square of video is a different color; we think of it as “50 Shades of Our Basement”. The whole piece was recorded in just a few hours, and it’s fun to see how the light changes in a relatively short space of time! Once again, Carla enjoyed the opportunity to play those bass bells. A highlight was when we got the lowest part recorded correctly on the first attempt!

Procession and Celebration - bass handbells

More information about the music

Procession and Celebration is for 5-7 octaves of handbells, with optional 2-octave handchimes. If you don’t have the chimes, you could play those notes with bells instead. It’s a Level 5 arrangement; fun for an advanced-level handbell choir, but also an interesting and achievable challenge for an aspiring-to-bronze choir. If you’d like to play this original composition, the sheet music is available to download from Choraegus.

Important information about Choraegus handbell music

When you buy Choraegus handbell music, please note that it will come to you as a PDF file. That means you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. When you’ve downloaded your music, your one-time payment (for the choir version of the score) entitles you to print out up to 15 copies for your group. Individual copies are also available, for massed ringing events, or as preview copies. If you buy a preview copy, you’ll need to purchase the choir version for your ensemble to play it. Please read our licensing agreement for full information. If you’re new to buying music from Choraegus, we recommend our step-by-step guide!

Your purchase of this piece comes with our no-fuss permission for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and online video-sharing. You won’t need to apply for a performance licence when you’re ready to add it to your concert repertoire!

Any questions?

If you have any questions about buying or playing our music, please look at the Frequently-Asked Questions first. If you don’t find the information you seek, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help.

April 15, 2021

Peace – for Handbells, 3-5 Octaves

It often seems as if the world is full of so much violence, and our own lives are more stress-filled than we’d like them to be. Sometimes we just long for a bit of peace! In our house, that can mean sitting down with a cup of tea in front of the TV, but sometimes playing music is exactly what’s needed.

Peace is an original composition for 3-5 octaves of handbells, with optional handchimes. It’s a Level 2+ arrangement, and fairly straightforward to play. This video was one of the first 3-octave pieces we put together. It was a sight-read, with no rehearsing beforehand, but the notes all seem to be there, so you’ll get the idea.

Where to get the sheet music

Peace is suitable for secular performances, as well as for worship services. If you’d like to this original composition, the sheet music is available to download from Choraegus.

Choraegus handbell music is designed to be downloaded as a PDF file. That means you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. When you’ve downloaded your music, your one-time payment (provided you bought the choir version) entitles you to print out up to 15 copies for your group. Please read our licensing agreement for full information. If you’re new to buying music from Choraegus, we recommend our step-by-step guide!

If you enjoyed Peace, you might also enjoy another of Larry’s original compositions, Newness! Purchase of either of these pieces gives you the benefit of our no-fuss permissions for performance, broadcasting, live-streaming and online video-sharing – so you won’t need to apply for a separate licence for any of these.

Any questions?

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

April 9, 2021

Happy – for Handbells, 3-5 Octaves

Happy – for handbells, 3-5 octaves – is one of our recent “just the two of us” recording projects. We played the 5-octave version this time, and added the cajón too – a box-shaped percussion instrument, originally from Peru. For anyone interested, Larry’s cajón is the El Guapo from Malmark Bellcraftsmen.

Larry originally wrote Happy for the Low Ding Zone Murder Mystery shows in early 2013. It has that 1920s flavor, and was a lot of fun to play — both as the original bass piece, and more recently as a 3-5 octave full-choir piece. As with all our put-together full-choir videos, we recorded it without rehearsing first, so please think of any minor inaccuracies as “adding character”!

More information about the music

Happy is an original Level 4 composition for 3-5 octaves of handbells, with optional handchimes — F6, G6, G#6, A6, B6, and C6. The sheet music is available to download from Choraegus.

Choraegus handbell music is designed to be downloaded as a PDF file. That means you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. When you’ve downloaded your music, your one-time payment (for the full-choir score) entitles you to print out up to 15 copies for your group. Please read our licensing agreement for full information. If you’re new to buying music from Choraegus, we recommend our step-by-step guide!

Any questions?

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

March 15, 2021

Celebration – Easy Handbell Music!

Looking for easy handbell music? Admittedly, Larry does have a bit of a reputation for writing challenging music. However, just occasionally, he likes to write something suitable for a beginning handbell choir, or a group in need of something to play that’s not going to take too much time to learn. Celebration is one of those pieces.

Larry wrote this piece some years ago for the handbell choir at Saint Francis High School in Mountain View, California. It has straightforward rhythm and lots of chords – ideal for building confidence in newer ringers, or for groups getting back together after a period of absence. Here’s our new demonstration video, recorded with just the two of us:

This is another arrangement that needs no bell-sharing between ringers. If your handbell choir is observing social distancing, and playing from spaced-apart tables, this piece could work well!

More information about Choraegus handbell music

Celebration is an original composition written for 3-5 octaves of handbells. The sheet music is available to download from Choraegus.

Choraegus handbell music is designed to be downloaded as a PDF file. That means you’ll be responsible for printing your own music, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. When you’ve downloaded your music, your one-time payment entitles you to print out up to 15 copies for your group. Please read our licensing agreement for full information. If you’re new to buying music from Choraegus, we recommend our step-by-step guide. We designed this guide to take you through the process in a stress-free way.

Any questions?

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