Ring to Spring 2011 Handbell Festival

Ring to Spring 2011 will be held on Saturday, February 26, 2011 with clinician Karen Buckwalter.

http://www.PhillyBells.org/RTS

Philadelphia Handbell Ensemble again presents Ring to Spring, a daylong handbell festival that includes massed ringing, coaching sessions, classes, a reading session and a public concert. Karen Buckwalter will be our guest conductor.

Date: Saturday, February 26, 2011

Location: Eastern High School, 1401 Laurel Oak Road, Voorhees, NJ

Time: 8am to 6pm (public concert begins at 4:30pm)

Guest Conductor: Karen Buckwalter

Registering for Ring to Spring

Registration: $105 per choir or $20 per ringer, postmarked by Feb. 15, 2011
Early Bird Registration: $95 per choir, postmarked by Jan. 30, 2011

Download the General Information Sheet and Registration Form to register. If you have questions please contact Gail Posey at 856‐784‐4441 x6025 or info@phillybells.org.

This event is endorsed by the American Guild of English Handbell Ringers (Handbell Musicians of America), therefore you or your organization must be a member to participate.

Our Conductor

Karen Lakey Buckwalter, a distinguished organist, pianist, and composer is Associate Minister of Music at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, in Hanover, PA, She currently directs the handbell program, a chamber ensemble, assists with the vocal choirs and is privileged to play a 231 rank Austin organ (14,341 pipes), the 7th largest church organ in the world.  Mrs. Buckwalter is a graduate of Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ, and The Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she studied organ with Mr. John Weaver and earned the prestigious Artists Diploma in Organ Performance.

Internationally known in the field of handbell composition, Mrs. Buckwalter composed her first published work in 1982. With 36 handbell and 9 choral compositions now in print, she has earned enthusiastic praise for her creative compositions, her colorful harmonies and use of chromatics which have raised the musicality in handbell music as a genre. Mrs. Buckwalter is sought after as a handbell clinician for workshops and bell festivals throughout the country. Her works are frequently selected at area and national handbell conferences and have been recorded in the United States and Japan.

Music and Workshops

All repertoire can be played by 3, 4, or 5 octave choirs. Partial choirs and individual ringers are welcome. Please purchase and rehearse the repertoire prior to attending and be ready to "fine tune" it under the expert direction of Karen Buckwalter.

More information on coaching sessions and classes will be posted soon. Members of Philadelphia Handbell Ensemble will be the clinicians.

Back by popular demand, will be handbell merchandise from Handbell Services. Lunch, prepared by the Eastern HS Band Aides, will be for sale at the festival for a small fee. You may also bring your own lunch.

Schedule for the Day

7:30 Building Opens
8:00–8:30 Registration & Set‐up
8:45–10:00 Massed Rehearsal I
10:10–11:00 Reading Session
11:10–12:10 Massed Rehearsal II
12:10–1:10 Lunch
1:15–2:45 Massed Rehearsal III
2:50–4:00 Coaching/Classes
4:30–5:45 Final Concert

Repertoire

• As the Deer, arr. Susan Geschke. Agape 2464, Level 2+
  listing on Jeffers Handbell Supply
• Hail the Day that Sees Him Rise, arr. Dan Edwards. Choristers Guild CGB585, Level 3
  listing on Jeffers Handbell Supply
• Michael Row the Boat Ashore, arr. Karen Buckwalter. Beckenhorst HB387, Level 3
  available in early October — order from your supplier or directly from Beckenhorst
• Over the Rainbow, arr. Tammy Waldrop. Alfred 31753, Level 3
  listing on Jeffers Handbell Supply
• Praise to the Lord, arr. Karen Buckwalter. Beckenhorst HB290, Level 3
  listing on Jeffers Handbell Supply