Book us for the 2017 Christmas and Holiday Season!

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!

The 2017 Christmas and Holiday season - handbell duo
Christmas – our favorite time of year!

New Music – Five – for 5 Octaves of Handbells

It’s hard to believe that more than five years have passed since our handbell-music-filled wedding in California. What better way to celebrate a wedding anniversary… than with a new piece of music – for 5 octaves of handbells?

Larry wrote Five as a surprise for Carla, and used secret mysterious powers to compose the whole thing without her even noticing.

Our thanks go to the Carillon Choir at Third Reformed Church of Holland, Michigan and their director Linda Strouf for playing this new piece in the Sunday morning services on our anniversary weekend.

More about Five

Five is an original composition; AGEHR level 2+ . It’s for 5 octaves of handbells and (optional) 2 octaves of handchimes. Quite surprisingly, the time signature is not 5/4 or 5/8. However, there are other “fives” hidden throughout the score.

If you’d like to play this piece, the music is available for purchase and download from Choraegus.

Information about buying music from Choraegus

Choraegus handbell music is designed to be downloaded and printed at home. 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 15 copies for your group. Please read our licensing agreement for full details. If you’re new to buying Choraegus music, we recommend our step-by-step guide!

Any questions?

If you have any questions about buying or playing our music, you might like to look at 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.

5 octaves of handbells - Five, by Larry Sue
Wedding bells!

Accompanied Christmas Pieces – for 12 Bells and Piano

Here are two newly-available arrangements for 12 bells and piano accompaniment. Larry arranged these pieces for a UK group led by Meg Hostler of Finchampstead Handbell Ringers. Their debut performances were in England on Christmas Eve 2015.

The arrangements are less challenging than our other 12-bell pieces. Larry arranged them to be easy for a small group to learn and perform with minimal rehearsal time!

Both these demo recordings were made during an all-too-brief “Christmas in February” rehearsal session when we got together with Meg for an Inspiration International reunion during our most recent visit to England in February 2016. The first piece is In the Bleak Midwinter:

The second is the Austrian carol Still, Still, Still:

The piano accompaniment score for Still, Still, Still is the same as the accompaniment that goes with the solo version of this carol.

Would you like to play these pieces?

If you’d like to play either (or both!) of these pieces for 12 bells and piano, the sheet music is available for purchase and download from Choraegus.

Choraegus handbell music is designed to be downloaded and printed at home. You’ll be responsible for printing your own scores, and you won’t receive anything in the mail. If you’re new to buying our music, please look at the step-by-step guide. We designed this to help make the process stress-free!

Please read our licensing agreement before making your purchase, and read our guide to how many copies your purchase allows you to print. Don’t pay for more copies than you need!

Any questions?

If you have any questions about buying or playing our music, please 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!

12 bells and piano - Inspiration Handbells

Handbells in Concert with the Coopersville Community Concert Band

Our handbells have become a regular part of Zeeland Community Band performances since we moved to Michigan last year. We’ve joined in with their Christmas concerts and summer performances. Now we’re branching out! We’ll be guest artists in a concert with the Coopersville Community Concert Band at the end of this month. We’re looking forward to this new experience!

More information about the concert

October Incantations takes place on Monday, October 23 at 7:30pm, at the Coopersville High School Center Stage Theatre. Admission is free, but this community band will appreciate any donations to help with the cost of presenting this concert. The band will be performing many concert band favorites, including Radetzky March, Incantations and Dance, October, Palladio and Danse Macabre.

We’ll be playing our handbells, both with the band and on our own. We’re looking forward to adding some spooky tunes to the evening. The concert will also feature the first performance of the newly-formed Coopersville Community Choir. The band (and the handbell duo) will be in costume, and you are invited to attend in costume too. It’s an opportunity to dig out your Halloween clothes and join in the fun!

Coopersville Community Concert Band present a concert on October 23 2017
October Incantations – see the band in concert!

New 8-Bell Music for Christmas 2017

As all handbell musicians know, it’s important to start preparing for the holiday season long before it begins. Here’s some new 8-bell music for Christmas!

Angels from the Realms of Glory

We added this lively carol to our holiday repertoire last Christmas, and it proved to be an audience-pleaser!

From Starry Skies Descending (Tu scendi dalle Stelle)

This is possibly our favorite of this year’s new eight-bell Christmas music. It’s an Italian carol. If you’re a fan of sixteenth notes (semiquavers), you’ll enjoy playing this one!

Joy to the World

This piece was new to us in December 2016, and it quickly became a favorite!

The Seven Joys of Mary

This is a lively English carol, which we very much enjoyed playing for the first time in December 2016.

Sussex Carol

Also known as “On Christmas Night All Christians Sing”, this traditional English carol has an optional repeat section, and is a lot of fun to play. We recorded the video as part of our “A Carol A Day” project for December 2016.

Up on the Housetop

This arrangement is a fun one, mostly straightforward, but with a little triplet challenge in the middle! We recorded this video in December 2016, as part of our “A Carol A Day” project.

The Wassail Song

Also known as “Here We Come A-Wassailing”, this is another traditional carol from England, which we recorded as part of our A Carol A Day project last December.

While Shepherds Watched their Flocks by Night

This is an arrangement based on the “Winchester Old” tune, commonly used in the United Kingdom. It’s rhythmically straightforward to play, and could be a good choice for a quartet.

These new pieces, together with our other Christmas music for 8 bells, are available from Choraegus. We hope you’ll enjoy them!

Any questions?

If you have any questions about buying or playing our music. If you have any questions, please contact us, and we’ll be happy to help!

8-bell music for Christmas - from Choraegus
Choraegus – Bringing Music to the People

A Fall Handbell Festival at First Congregational Church in Saginaw

We recently celebrated our 5th Wedding Anniversary. What better way to celebrate than by spending a day at a handbell festival? First Congregational Church in Saginaw hosted a Fall Handbell Festival – Ringing in a New Season, and invited us to take part in the fun.

First Congregational Church - the venue for the handbell festival
First Congregational Church – the venue for the handbell festival

Someone somewhere forgot to push the “It’s the fall season now!” button. That meant the weather was hot, hot, hot! Around 40 intrepid handbell musicians from churches around the area attended. We gathered together in a very warm church to rehearse and perform under the baton of world-renowned pianist and composer Catherine McMichael. Catherine had written two original compositions for the event, and Dr. Quincy Dobbs was there to play the organ.

Handbell workshops with bass and treble bells

Larry enjoyed the opportunity to get his hands on some bass handbells again. He led workshops for festival participants to find out more about bass bell techniques. Carla led well-attended workshops exploring some of the techniques and challenges involved in playing treble bells. We all enjoyed discussing the merits of various multiple bell techniques. Some of the treble ringers worked on weaving a series of bells without crossing their arms! That can be a challenge, but everyone did very well.

Our friend Kim Finison from Lansing (we know him from the Bay View Week of Handbells!) was on hand to help with handbell maintenance and repairs. We all enjoyed a wonderful lunch and great hospitality.

Larry Sue plays bass bells in Saginaw
Larry enjoyed the opportunity to play bass bells again!

Thanks to all involved in making this festival happen!

We had a very enjoyable day at the festival. Our thanks go to Jeri at FCC and everyone involved with the huge task of organising the event. We hope to do it all again someday!

Larry and Carla, handbell musicians at FCC Saginaw, Michigan
This photo does not show how HOT the weather was!

Coronation and Triumphant Exultation is now on YouTube!

We’re excited to be able to share a video of the world premiere of Larry’s original composition Coronation and Triumphant Exultation. The video is from the 2017 Bay View Week of Handbells, here in Michigan.

The Week of Handbells is an annual event; always one of the highlights of our year. We’ve been attending together since 2010. The Thursday evening concert is always an exciting experience. The musicians work hard for months beforehand, and it’s a thrilling concert to be part of. This video is part of the full concert recording by Pierpont Productions.

Would you like to play this piece?

Coronation and Triumphant Exultation (Crùnadh agus Iolach) is published by AGEHR Publishing (AG58002). It’s for 5-8 octaves of handbells, and optional 5 octaves of handchimes.

This piece is the 2017 Donald E. Allured Original Composition Award piece. Larry dedicated the piece to Maestro Carl Wiltse, who directed the Bay View Week of Handbells for fifteen years. Here’s a photo of us with Carl. Yes, he’s a lot taller than we are!

Coronation and Triumphant Exultation - dedicated to Maestro Carl Wiltse
With Maestro Carl Wiltse at Bay View Week of Handbells 2014

Any questions?

If you have any questions about this piece, please contact us, and we’ll be happy to help. We hope you’ll enjoy playing this piece!

The Campanelli Handbell Ensemble Concert in New York City

Following our recent performances with the Campanelli Handbell Ensemble during their tour of the USA from Estonia – the full concert from Estonian House, New York City, is now available to watch on YouTube.

Estonian House was a wonderful performance venue. The building houses the New York Estonian School, an Estonian dance school and choir, and it’s where an Estonian-language newspaper is published. So it was the perfect place to hold the first Campanelli concert on their U.S. tour! There wasn’t room for a huge audience, but the seats were filled, and everyone enjoyed the performance.

This concert contains music by Susan T. Nelson and others, and includes the first-ever performance of Sue’s beautiful arrangement of Mu Süda Ärka Üles. We commissioned that piece to commemorate our fifth wedding anniversary and the Campanelli tour. You’ll see us during the performance of that piece, playing a part for 8-bell duet. You’ll also see some traditional Estonian dancing at the end of the concert, where audience members were invited to join in. The concert also featured a performance by guest artist Natalia Paruz – known as “The Saw Lady”. If you’ve never seen a virtuoso performance on the musical saw, you should enjoy this! Natalia performs regularly in the New York Subway, and has provided music for movies and TV internationally.

We hope you’ll enjoy the Campanelli Handbell Ensemble concert – Sue’s Blues Too! If you have any questions, please let us know and we’ll be happy to help.

Campanelli Handbell Ensemble concert
Campanelli Handbell Ensemble

The 2017 Downtown Holland Street Performer Series

We had a lot of fun taking part in our first Downtown Holland Street Performer Series since moving to Michigan last year. We performed on two evenings – one in June and one in August – in two different locations on 8th Street.

Downtown Holland - street performing
Larry and Carla – Handbell Duets in Downtown Holland

We enjoyed playing our handbell duets in Downtown Holland. We especially appreciated how many people stopped to chat with us about the bells and our music. Even though many people here in Holland have seen and heard handbell choirs before, there are many people who haven’t seen handbell music performed by just two people holding two bells in each hand. We always enjoy showing people how we play, and explaining some of the techniques we use in our music.

Four-in-hand handbell duets in Holland, Michigan
Four-in-hand handbell duets in Holland, Michigan

Thank you to all the event supporters!

The Street Performer Series is a fun community event, and we’re happy to have been given the opportunity to take part. Our thanks go to the Gentex Corporation and Holland Christian Schools for sponsoring this event. Thanks also to the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs for their support through the Holland Area Arts Council. Special thanks to everyone who stopped to listen to our music and chat with us. We hope to perform on 8th Street again next summer!

Holland Street Performers series thank you
Thank you!

Available Now – the Second Edition of The Bass Ringer’s Notebook!

The Bass Ringer's Notebook
The Bass Ringer’s Notebook – 2nd Edition!

We’re excited to announce that the second edition of Larry’s book The Bass Ringer’s Notebook is now available for purchase from Choraegus! If you’re a bass ringer looking for tried-and-tested methods or new ideas, this is the book for you! If you’ve never ventured into the world of bass bells before, and want to know how to “sling the buckets” in a way that’s both musically expressive and won’t endanger your physical health… this book is for you too.

More about Larry’s experience with bass handbells

Larry has been a church musician since 1974, and a handbell musician since 1987. He became a bass-ringing specialist when the five-octave bell choir at his church became shorthanded, resulting in a long-term assignment of “CD4, and anything to the left that you can manage.” He’s been a bass ringer at Distinctly Bronze and the Bay View Week of Handbells, and frequently provides instruction as a bass handbell clinician. As the founder, leader, and composer/arranger of Low Ding Zone, the World’s First Bass-Only Handbell Ensemble, he also proved that the upper staff isn’t absolutely essential to the world of handbells. He knows what he’s talking about – so you can buy this book with confidence!

The new edition of The Bass Ringer’s Notebook contains lots of new information and ideas, on such topics as:

  • Lifting, Ringing, and Damping Bass Bells
  • Bass Chime Techniques
  • Table Layout
  • Assignments
  • and lots more!

There’s also a new YouTube playlist of the techniques described in the book, which is a great way to see the techniques demonstrated, in real time and in slow-motion. This book isn’t about giving you a single way to play bass bells; it’s about providing practical options and ideas, so that you can choose the methods that suit you personally. Read it, try the suggestions, and see what works best!

The new edition of The Bass Ringer’s Notebook is available now from Choraegus. This one’s not a file to download; it’s an actual spiral-bound book, which we will lovingly package up and send to you after you place your order. It’s taken ten years for this second edition to appear – but, as all bass ringers know, good things are “worth the weight”!

Larry Sue, author of The Bass Ringer's Notebook
Larry at the Bay View Week of Handbells