You’ll enjoy playing this eight-bell arrangement of the ASH GROVE! It’s often encountered in hymnody as Let All Things Now Living. Let all things now living a song of thanksgiving to God the Creator triumphantly raise, who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us, who guides us and leads to the end of our …
Category: Larry and Carla
Aug 10
Be Thou My Vision (SLANE) – for eight accompanied handbells
Our piano-accompanied eight-handbell arrangement Be Thou My Vision will work well with your small handbell ensemble (duet, trio, or quartet)! Historical note: This arrangement came into being because Steve in Maryland bought some music in early July 2020, and mentioned that he was hoping to find an arrangement of Be Thou My Vision for eight …
Jul 16
Al die willen te kaap’ren varen – for eight handbells
Clearly, there’s a tiny bit of (ancient) gender bias when you announce “all who want to be privateers, must be bearded men”. But eating rancid bread doesn’t sound like much fun. Perhaps it’s a somewhat silly song in today’s world, but our eight-handbell arrangement is fun to play! Al die willen te kaap’ren varen Moeten …
Jun 03
Morning Has Broken – for six handbells with piano accompaniment
The traditional Gaelic tune BUNESSAN is better known to most of us as the music to the popular hymn Morning Has Broken (popularized by Cat Stevens in the 1970s). Our piano-accompanied six-handbell arrangement of the hymn tune BUNESSAN provides an opportunity to play as a two-bells-each trio. Another possibility is to play as a duet …
Mar 19
Song of Hope/Canto de esperanza (ARGENTINA, for eight handbells)
One of the teens at our church asked if we could make an arrangement of this lively Argentine melody for eight bells. Here’s the result!
Mar 05
Gwerzy – for Eight Handbells!
We’ve (finally!) decided to release this one. Gwerzy has been a challenge to the handbell world since it was arranged for full handbell choir in the 1990s. It’s our privilege to continue the fun (with permission from Kíla – thank you Colm and Dee!) with our eight-handbell arrangement. As Robert Conrad used to say in …
Sep 27
De Drie Koningen – for eight handbells!
We have a new eight-handbell Christmas arrangement! It’s the Flemish carol De Drie Konginen (“The Three Kings”). We hope you’ll enjoy playing it for Epiphany (or Christmas, or Advent, or maybe even all year round)!
Dec 17
“Silent Night” for eight handbells – at last!
We’ve wanted to have an eight-bell arrangement of Silent Night for some time. If you count your way through the score, you’ll find that the melody has eleven notes. Since eleven is a lot more than eight (to two four-in-hand handbell ringers), we couldn’t initially figure out how to make it into one of our …
Sep 26
Mu Süda Ärka Üles
The Estonian handbell ensemble Campanelli visited the eastern United States in 2017, performing in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. We had the privilege of tagging along with them for the week, and enjoyed their company and friendship. When we all went to the Malmark factory for a tour, Inna, their director, had us join …
Jul 16
I Vow to Thee (THAXTED) for Eight Handbells
I Vow to Thee, My Country is based on the THAXTED theme from the “Jupiter” movement of Gustav Holst’s suite The Planets. In the United Kingdom, it’s sung to words written by Cecil Spring-Rice about dedication to God and country. In some US hymnals, this melody is matched to O God, Beyond All Praising. This …