Repertoire - Stow Heritage Ringers

Baby Elephant Walk Mancini, arr. Sondra K. Tucker

Compassion Jason Krug

Elegy William A. Payn

It is Well with My Soul Bliss, arr. Cathy Moklebust

Les Cloche John A. Behnke

Palladio Karl Jenkins, arr. Shawn Gingrich

Pavane and Spiritoso Matthew Compton

Popcorn G. Kingsley, arr. Amy Maakestad

Prelude on Herzliebster arr. Fred Gramann

Processional Rondo Kerry Johnson

Reverie Karen Lakey Buckwalter

The Blessing Paul A. McKlveen

Toccata on King's Weston R. Van Williams, arr. Matthew Compton

Angels We Have Heard on High arr. Kyle Brengle

Believe (from the Polar Express) arr. Sandra Eithun

Carol of the Bells Lorie Line, arr. Kevin McChesney

God Rest Ye, Merry arr. Jason Krug

Hallelujah Chorus Handel, arr. Martha Lynn Thompson

O Come, O Come Emmanuel Joel Raney, arr. Arnold Sherman

O Little Town of Bethlehem arr. Cathy Mocklebust

On This Day Earth Shall Ring arr. Fred Gramann

Silent Night arr. Dan Angerman

Sinfonia from Cantata No. 142 JS Bach, arr. Michael Keller

(For Unto Us a Child is Born)

Sleigh Ride Anderson, arr. Martha Lynn Thompson

St. Nick Boogie Dan Edwards

T'was in the Moon of Wintertime arr. Matthew Prins

What Child is This (Greensleeves) arr. Hart Morris

Jason W. Krug
World Premiere - Spring 2015
NOTES FROM THE COMPOSER
I remember talking with you (Sherri) about what you wanted and you had said that the group liked mixed meter, so I'm sure that is what I had in the back of my mind as I was playing around with ideas. I do know that it seems a lot of mixed meter pieces sort of have that mixed-meter-ness forced upon them by the composer, but I've always felt that mixed meter should in service of the music, not the other way around.

I also like writing pieces that grow organically, which is how you have that quiet malleted beginning, then a simple theme in the battery bells, and it just grows from there. Even the contrasting middle section is sort of an outgrowth of that initial rhythm and theme.

I really hate titling pieces and tend to put it off until the last minute, if possible. The advantage of that, though, is that the piece is done, so I can just look at and listen to it and see what ideas, thoughts, and emotions it conjures up. In this case, the word "Intrepid" came to mind, and in this case, I think it fits both the spirit of the piece, and the group for whom it's written -- in talking with you and members of the group, it was made pretty clear to me that they were up for any challenge I might care to throw at them, and that they'd attack any piece in their possession with that same determination and fearlessness.
~Jason Krug

Caleb Onstead
World Premiere - Spring 2018
NOTES FROM THE COMPOSER
The inspiration to write this composition came to me after a long day of browsing handbell sheet music on the internet. I realized that in all of the literature written for our instrument no one composer has written a collection of formal etudes. An etude is defined as: "A musical composition designed as an exercise or a demonstration of the skill of the performer." Toccata Festivo gets right to the heart of that statement. This piece is the first in a series, inspired by Frederic Chopin's Op. 10 for piano. One could compare Toccata Festivo to a piece like the "Revolutionary Etude" a piece meant to showcase the endurance of the performer over a prolonged period of time.

In Toccata, the melody is heard in every register and is written in a simple rondo form (ABACA). The first and last A sections are nearly identical with the only differences being in articulation and growth in the last A section propelling us to the finale. In the B section we get a new musical idea. Lush, chromatic harmonies abound in this rather difficult section. The second A section sees the theme traveling around the table a bit. Finally, the C section has the most mixed meter and is put together using fragments of the main theme configured in irregular phrase lengths.

Almost all of the notes for Toccata were written in a single evening, and then refined over the next several months. Toccata Festivo and all subsequent additions to the collection are dedicated to Sherri Stoffer, director of Stow Heritage Ringers, Jennifer Cupak, director of the Celebration Ringers and member of Stow Heritage Ringers, Marilyn Hines, and the entire Stow Heritage Ringers ensemble (present and future). Without the teaching and mentorship of these three outstanding musicians I would not have even known enough about handbells to have written these pieces.

This collection of etudes, like Chopin's Op. 10 for piano, is intentionally challenging repertoire. Handbell music is graded according to difficulty upon publication. There are 6 Levels of difficulty and Toccata Festivo is a solid Level 6 composition when performed at tempo. The piece requires a 5-7 octave range of handbells.
The second installment of the series, entitled "Peals", is in editing stage. It will offer a study in phrasing and dynamics and be of great appeals to those ensembles who love mixed, irregular meter as it is composed in 7/8 (in all possible rhythmic configurations), 3/4, 5/4, 3/8, and 5/8. "Peals" is also written for 5-7 octaves. It is my hope that these pieces will provide advanced handbell ensembles with challenging showpieces that push the boundaries of what is possible for our amazing instrument.

Robert Ward
Ohio Premiere

SHR was privileged to work with Robert Ward on a wonderful arrangement of King of Kings, Lord of Lords. Heritage was scheduled to perform a special "birthday" concert for Marilyn Hines. Marilyn has been very involved in the AGEHR, serving on the Area II board as well as national President. When her family planned a surprise celebration for her birthday in the spring of 2010, they asked SHR to entertain the guests, as many were "bell people".

Bob was inspired to arrange the spirited praise song, King of Kings, Lord of Lords as a special gift to Marilyn, to honor their friendship over the years. He sent the score to us to prepare for the celebration concert and we have fallen in love with it! We hope to see it published in the very near future!

Michael Glasgow
World Premiere - 2010
Below are notes directly from Michael regarding this new work. To learn more of what Michael is working on, please visit his website at:
http://www.michaeljglasgow.com

Five, Six, Seven, Eight! was commissioned by the Stow Heritage Ringers of Stow, Ohio. In June of 2009, it was my honor to conduct the AGEHR Area V youth event Ringin’ at the Point, where I met some members of the Stow Heritage Ringers. I was thrilled to learn that they were partial to my style – chromatic, energized, a little bit jazzy – and that they were about to begin work on Celerity. Soon after, I was excited to find myself discussing commission options for this unique group.

I had begun work on a “pet project” (all composers have them!) that needed a group to own it, cherish it, and breath life into it. I had long wanted to compose a piece entitled Five, Six, Seven, Eight!, as that phrase, customarily used to kick off dance numbers, has so much energy!

When I described the project to SHR, they were not only receptive to the concept, but excited at the rhythmic challenges it presented. At last, Five, Six, Seven, Eight! had found its home.

The piece is in ABCBA form (this “mirror image” structure is also known as “arch form”). The A section is technically in 11/8 time, with each measure a composite 5/8 + 6/8. It relentlessly blasts along with chimes, martellato and some pretty intense mallet work, arriving at the B section in 7/8. Often, passages or pieces in 7/8 maintain a constant subdivision of the measure throughout (3+2+2+, 2+3+2 or 2+2+3). Not surprisingly, this isn’t the case in Five, Six, Seven, Eight! (if you’ve looked at my other pieces, you’d understand why!). The 7/8 section constantly shifts the measure’s subdivision, and SHR never batted an eye as they rose to the challenge.

Because of the shifting accents, the transition to the bluesy C section in 8/8 time is pretty transparent. 8/8 is different from 4/4 in that 4/4 time contains four groups of two eighth notes per measure, whereas 8/8 includes at least one group of three. In this piece, the 8/8 section maintains a constant subdivision of 3+3+2 eighth notes per measure.

The piece “backs out” as it moves through a recapitulation of the 7/8 section, at the end of which the percussion sneaks back in as the tempo accelerates, leading us to a reprise of the A section. The last four measures of the piece are in 5/8, 6/8, 7/8, and 8/8 (2+3+3+1!), respectively.

The American Guild of English Handbell Ringers (AGEHR) assigns levels (1-6) to pieces based on difficulty. This piece is clearly a Level 6, and the Stow Heritage Ringers have tackled it with passion and enthusiasm. I hope you will join me in extending sincere and heartfelt appreciation for continually “pushing the envelope” as we join together to advance the art (and push the limits) of handbell ringing.
Michael J. Glasgow

our play list for the spring 2025 season

What we've played in past performances

Spring Repertoire | 2019

Christmas Repertoire | 2019

Spring Repertoire | 2022

Christmas Repertoire | 2022

Spring Repertoire | 2023

Christmas Repertoire | 2023

Featured premieres

Intrepid

Toccata Festivo

King of Kings, Lord of Lords

Five, Six, Seven, Eight!

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