Handbell Ringing
Solihull U3A Handbell Group was founded over twenty years ago. We are a hard-working and enthusiastic group who meet fortnightly on alternative Thursday afternoons for one hour. At present we are eight in number and could possibly take another person, but they must be able to read music and be familiar with timing and note values. The standard of our musicianship has improved considerably this year as we attempt more difficult pieces and increase our repertoire.
We give concerts in local venues and last year (2015) we were able to send £300.00 to the Marie Curie Hospice in Solihull from the gifts we received. So far this year (Oct. 2016) we have sent £100.00 to the Air Ambulance Service
On Saturday 23rd. September 2017, eight ringers from Solihull U3A attended a Hand Bell Rally at Areley Kings near Stourport. When we arrived we received a very warm welcome but when five other groups arrived mostly in uniform and began to unload all their bells we began to get cold feet. As the morning progressed we had massed ringing by all six groups of three pieces of music specially composed which we thoroughly enjoyed. It was then the turn of each group to perform a piece of music of their choice and at this stage we all wondered about the standard of performance but when our turn came we equipped ourselves extremely well and receive much applause. To conclude the morning session we were entertained by four extremely talented performers most of them having three or four bells each and we were very impressed by their contribution to the day. After an excellent lunch the afternoon followed a similar and once again we played and we were all surprised by the applause we received. The day concluded with a massed performance by everyone. All the groups thanked us for coming and invited us to join them at future rallies. It was a most enjoyable day and we all came away having learned new skills and much encouraged and we look forward to participating in similar Hand bell ringing days.