About Handbells
Handbells are manually rung bells, each with a specific musical pitch. A group of ringers, called a handbell choir, uses a set of these bells, with one bell for each note of the chromatic scale, to perform pieces of music. The bells rest on foam-covered tables and are picked up as needed. The typical venues for handbell choirs include churches, schools and universities. Community and professional handbell groups also exist.
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Construction
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Handbells are made of bronze, though the largest bass bells may also be made of aluminum to reduce their weight. Handbells range in weight from 7 oz. to 18 lbs.
A handbell differs from a common bell, such as a school bell, in that the clapper moves on a hinge in one direction instead of moving freely in all directions. A spring mechanism keeps the clapper away from the casting, the main part of the bell that vibrates, to prevent extraneous soundings of the bell. This provides precise control of when the bell sounds, which is necessary for playing music well.
History
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The brothers Robert and William Cor of Aldbourne, England, produced the first bells with distinct pitches and hinged clappers---that is, the first recognizably modern handbells---around the turn of the 18th century. Bells of this type provided a way to rehearse the patterned peals of much larger tower bells.
In time, handbell ringers started playing bona fide musical works in addition to their tower-bell patterns. According to Nigel Bullen, the first set of handbells was brought to America by Margaret Shurcliffe in 1902. Handbell groups proliferated during the second half of the 20th century, and their performances greatly improved in precision and musicality.
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Basic Playing Technique
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To properly ring a handbell, the player must move the bell in a reverse circle, out and away from the body. At the point when the ringer's arm is fully extended, she snaps her wrist, causing the clapper to strike the casting and produce a tone. Silencing the bell at the right time is just as important as ringing it at the right time. The bell's vibrations are damped by touching the casting to a shoulder or side, or by placing the bell on the padded table.
Special Playing Techniques
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A great variety of sounds may be elicited from handbells with the use of special playing techniques. A ringer may "pluck" the bell by manually flicking the clapper into the casting. A "martellato" sound is created when the player plunges the bell rapidly downward into the foam. Ringers sometimes strike the bells with mallets as though the handbell set were a giant xylophone. Creative ringers have developed several special playing techniques in addition to these.
Handbell Music
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The particular nature of handbells requires that music be specifically composed or arranged for them. Thus the available handbell repertoire consists primarily of original compositions as well as arrangements of works first written for other instruments.
Like piano music, handbell music appears on a grand staff (a bass clef and a treble clef together). All ringers look at the same score and pick out their assigned notes.
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