Topic: Instrumental Versions - Handbells
Continued from previous post dated 16 December 2018.
Notes on Movement
Hudson Evangelical Presbyterian Church
Six people stood along the table facing the pews, with two at abutting tables to the left and right. The director stood with the ringers at stage right. Music stands were set on the tables covered with red cloths.
Christ Church
Two women and a man stood behind a table facing the director; two men were at the table to his left; a man and a woman were a table to his right. He used his forearms to direct, bent upwards from the elbows. Music stands were set on the tables covered with black cloths.
Grace Lutheran Church
The Joy Ringers were arrayed in a single line along the back of the choir. The female director stood in front of them in the center. Music stands were set on the tables.
Notes on Audience
The congregations applauded at the end of all three performances.
Audience Perceptions
Calvin Institute of Christian Worship recommended this arrangement as an offertory, [1] while the James River Ringers of Mechanicsville, Virginia, included it in the repertoire for a 2-3 Octave Festival in 2010. They warned participants about a "tricky page turn between m.74 and m.75" and that
"a few mixed meter measures pushes this piece to a Level 3 rating, but it’s not out of reach for most choirs." [2]
Other churches that performed Wilson’s arrangement according to their church bulletins were, in chronological order:
First Presbyterian Church. Rochester, Minnesota. Nothing But Angels Handbell Choir. Prelude. 17 March 2008.
Duke University Chapel (United Methodist Church). Durham, North Carolina. Prelude. 5 December 2010.
Grace United Methodist Church. Moorhead, Minnesota. Hand Bell Choir, directed by Sharon Fangsrud. Prelude. 26 March 2015.
Central United Methodist Church. Muskegon, Michigan. Joy Bells. Before scripture lesson. 24 April 2016.
The Church at Litchfield Park. Litchfield Park, Arizona. Heavenly Handbells, directed by Marilyn Chandler. Before scripture reading. 15 May 2016.
First Unitarian Universalist Society. San Francisco, California. Bell Choir, directed by Reiko Oda Lane. 5 March 2017 and 6 December 2017.
Urbandale United Church of Christ. Urbandale, Iowa. Adult Handbells, directed by Bobby Stinnett. Prelude. 11 February 2018.
First Congregational Church. Bloomfield, Connecticut. The Accidentals Handbell Ensemble. Between prayer and first lesson. 18 February 2018.
Community United Methodist Church. Columbia Heights, Minnesota. Before children’s time. 22 April 2018.
Notes on Performers
John Floyd Wilson was born in Youngstown, Ohio, [3] and earned his music degrees from the American Conservatory of Music and Northwestern University. [4] The Moody Bible Institute, where he taught, published his Introduction to Church Music in 1965. In turn, he organized the music and drama camp [5] for Cedar Lake Ministries, which the Moody Church founded in 1914. [6]
Hudson, Ohio, was part of the western extension of Connecticut before the American Revolution, and sold to speculators in 1796. Hudson, itself, was founded in 1799. [7] The Evangelical Presbyterian Church was associated with a group that broke away from the Presbyterian Church in 1981 after it disciplined individuals with dissenting views that did not contradict the Westminster Confession. [8] Donald Fortson said the denomination was in the tradition of the evangelists who broke with the church during the First Great Awakening. [9]
The church had three octaves of Malmark bells. [10] Its handbell choir director was from Evansville, Indiana, where her mother taught instrumental music in the elementary schools. Sarah Norman’s own degrees were in photography and law. [11]
Des Plaines was much like Tinley Park, discussed in the post for 13 December 2018. Its growth in the 1850s was fueled by a railroad, this one on the northwest side to Janesville, Wisconsin, and by German-speaking immigrants. [12] Deutsche Evangelische Christus Gemeinde was established in 1892. It received its first pipe organ and church bell in 1893, and the first "choir was organized in 1894." [13] Christ Church became affiliated with the United Church of Christ in 1957 when the Congregational Church absorbed the Evangelical and Reformed Church. [14]
The Handbell Ensemble rehearsed once a week. Bob Schumm began singing with the church as soon as he was confirmed and remained active for 41 years. [15] He moved to Tallahassee, Florida, where he died a few months ago when he was 55 years old. [16]
Grace Lutheran Church was organized in Tampa, Florida, in 1970 as a member of the Evangelical Lutheran synod. Laurie Sweigart began directing the Joy Ringers in 2016, and was also a member of the church’s praise band. [17] She earned an accounting degree from West Chester University of Pennsylvania. [18]
Availability
John Wilson, 2-3 octave
Sheet Music: Carol Stream, Illinois: Agape, 1993
3-5 octave
Sheet Music: Carol Stream, Illinois, Agape, 2001
Hudson Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Hudson, Ohio
YouTube: three-octave version uploaded by SGNorman on 6 May 2012.
Christ Church, Des Plaines, Illinois
YouTube: uploaded by fozzy1962 on 30 January 2014.
Grace Lutheran Church, Tampa, Florida
YouTube: uploaded by Alison Tietz on 20 February 2018.
End Notes
1. Calvin Institute of Christian Worship website
2. James River Ringers 2-3 Octave Festival brochure, sponsored by Mechanicsville Church of Christ. My copy of the score did not have a page break between the indicated measures.
3. "John Floyd Wilson." Hope Publishing website.
4. John F. Wilson obituary. NWI Times [Munster, Indiana]. 12 November 2014.
5. Northwestern University commencement program, 13 June 1960.
6. Doug Ross. "From Profane Park to Sacred Ground." NWI Times [Munster, Indiana] website.
7. Wikipedia. "Connecticut Western Reserve."
8. Wikipedia. "Evangelical Presbyterian Church (United States)."
9. S. Donald Fortson. The Presbyterian Creed: A Confessional Tradition in America. Milton Keynes, England: Paternoster Press, 2008. Cited by Wikipedia, EPC.
10. Sarah Norman. Notes for "Hudson Presbyterian EPC: ‘A Mighty fortress is our God’." Uploaded to YouTube by SGNorman of 5 November 2017.
11. Sarah Norman. "About Me: Who I Am and What I Have Done." 12 September 2011. Facebook.
12. Wikipedia. "Des Plaines, Illinois."
13. Denise Fleischer. "Christ Church Celebrates 125th Anniversary." Journal & Topics Online [Des Plaines, Illinois] website. 15 September 2017.
14. Wikipedia. "United Church of Christ."
15. Holly Schmidt. "Handbell Ensemble Director at Christ Church Retires." Chicago Suburban Daily Herald website. 24 June 2015.
16. Obituary for Robert A. Schumm. Chicago Suburban Daily Herald website. 6 July 2018.
17. "Laurie Sweigart." Grace Lutheran website.
18. "Laurie Sweigart." LinkedIn.
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