I, for one, will fully embrace the new moniker of musician. How cool is that: actually calling ourselves what we have always been?

Let's not get too full of ourselves...we're still going to Disneyland next summer - you know, the place where everyone reverts back to childhood....

Speaking of that, we've got round three of our Treasure Hunt below, so make sure you take a guess. You never know if you'll be right when no one else is. And we're still looking for someone to beat Barbara Meinke's correct guess record of 15 minutes after the enews was sent!

And note below that we've extended the deadline for the showcase choir, so if you haven't put your submission in, there's still time. 

Also on the Disneyland conference front, in case you didn't notice last month, we've added more information to the main conference web page. Make sure you check back often since more detailed track descriptions are coming soon, as well as online registration.

 

Congratulations to the September Treasure Hunt winner, Linda Krantz, who correctly guessed that Area 12 now has a PayPal button. For now, it lives at the bottom of the About Area 12 page at http://www.areaxii.org/AboutUs/AboutAreaXII. But we can put it anywhere we need it. It creates a much easier way for us to take donations from those who want to see our organization continue long into the future. So feel free to use it as often as you'd like!

 

But we digress...back to the Treasure Hunt! In case you still aren't aware, we're searching for hidden treasure on the Area 12 web site each month when your enewsletter is delivered to you. Each newsletter will contain a clue as to where on the Area 12 web site you can find something NEW. Use the clue to identify the new item. Be the first person to send an email with the correct answer and win the prize. For full details of the contest, eligibility requirements and a list of the prizes, go to the Contest Page on the Area 12 web site.  

Now, here's what you've been waiting for - the third clue: 

Three bears? Three pigs? No, not quite....

But three new characters have begun to write! 

The first eligible individual to send an email with the correct answer to info@areaxii.org wins this month's prize. Prize winners will be announced in the following month's enewsletter. All prize winners' contact information will be shared with the other winners to facilitate a potential prize exchange. 

Spread the word that we're on a treasure hunt....

Yo ho, Yo ho!

Hello SoCal-ers!

Good news! Information about the 2012 Southern California Spring Ring is now available at the SoCal web page! I'll be sending out paper information packets soon, but if you like to be johnny-on-the-spot, feel free to print out the PDF that's on the web page and mail it in to me to reserve your floor space now. 

The holiday season is fast approaching, so please don't forget to send me your event information -- Christmas concerts, candle-lighting ceremonies, tree-lighting ceremonies, solstice celebrations, anything! I want to know about it so I can put it on the calendar. Help me help YOU bring in more people to hear the wonderful sound of handbells!

As always, watch our Facebook page for the latest SoCal handbell news.

Looking forward to hearing from all of you this fall!

My best,
-Michèle
socal@areaxii.org

Happy Fall Everyone!

I hope everyone's ringing year got off to a fabulous start! Our fall events are almost upon us.

There are still some spaces left for the Fall Ringers Workshop on October 15. With more time spent learning fewer pieces, we hope it will be an enjoyable, satisfying opportunity to brush up our ringing skills and connect with other ringers in the area. We are also pleased to add some new faces to our class staff roster. The Youth Festival on November 12 is right around the corner as well. There is still time to order and rehearse music and register for both the festival and Friday Night Bronze Challenge on November 11. Information and registration forms for both of these events are available on the LA Metro section of our website.

Spring Ring 2012 is tentatively set for March 24 with clinician Kath Wissinger! We are expecting a big turnout, so mark your calendars now and stay tuned for more information.

Both the Bells of Neighborhood at Neighborhood Church in Pasadena and the Carillon and Wesleyan Ringers of First United Methodist Church in Glendale are looking for more ringers. If you or someone you know might like to ring with these groups, plese let me know. 

The youth handbell choir from St. Matthew's UMC in Annandale, Virginia will be in town next June for the Disneyland Conference while on their choirs' 34th summer handbell tour. They are looking for a few concert venues while they are in town. If you are interested in hosting this exceptional group, please contact me and I will put you in touch with their director, Nancy Cappel. Learn more about the group at:

http://www.kennedy-center.org/explorer/artists/?entity_id=9946&source_type=B 

As always, let me know if your group needs ringers, is playing a concert or is having an event. We would love to help you get the word out. I am also interested in hearing your ideas and learning how I can best support you in your ringing.

Check out our LA Metro Facebook page!

Hello Bay Area Ringers!

I am excited to be your new Bay Area Regional Coordinator. Many thanks to Beckie Wiley for her work in the past and for her help with forwarding me information during this transition.

As a brief introduction, I have been ringing in the Bay Area for almost 15 years with various groups. I currently ring with the SF State Handbell Choir and, until recently, I was also a member of Low Ding Zone, an all-bass ensemble.

Jumping into recent handbell news events:

The SF State Handbell Choir presented a joint concert with the Temple Hill Choir and Orchestra in Fremont on September 11. The event was a tenth anniversary memorial of 9/11 and included pieces such as Parting and Let There Be Peace On Earth. Parting is an original composition written in memory of the composer's father killed at the World Trade Center on 9/11. The memorial concert was well-received, much appreciated, and attended by close to 500 people.

Also in the news, KQED re-broadcast the program, "Ringing Up: Sonos Handbell Ensemble Concert" on September 21 and September 22, featuring music from Europe, Asia, and America. Details of the program can be found here: http://www.kqed.org/tv/programs/archive/index.jsp?pgmid=20210.

Here's a summary of upcoming events:

Sunday, January 8, 2012
Twelfth Night at Saint Andrew's
Saratoga, CA
Details: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=253417531347319 

Saturday, March 24, 2012
(Intense ring rehearsals begin Friday, March 23)  Bay Area Spring Ring
Cupertino, CA
Preliminary details: http://www.facebook.com/groups/142259329121264/?id=292619624085233¬if_t=group_activity 

Be sure to send me your events so that I can post them in next month's newsletter.

Julie

bayarea@areaxii.org 

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You have all heard the expression: "It's a no-win situation." Then there is another expression you sometimes hear: "It's a win-win situation." The latter describes the Carillon Handbell Choir's experience this past summer when we traveled to Wittenberg, Germany to help a new bell choir get started at the Castle Church.

On Sunday, September 18, the Carillons traveled back to Paradise Lutheran Church to give the members a special thank you for donating their bells and equipment (which had been sitting in the closet for eight years) to Castle Church. We brought along a sheet cake, display boards, photo albums, and gave a short PowerPoint presentation so they could see and hear their donated bells being used by the new choir in Germany. Each member received a crocheted cross from the Carillons. The people were very thankful that we shared our experience with them. As one member said, "It was a win-win situation for everyone."

Fall is here, so why not get a fresh start to the season by taking part in the Redding Handbell Festival, October 21 (Red Zone) and October 22 at Simpson University in Redding, California? Our guest conductor will be Barbara Walsh from Reno, Nevada. Besides massed ringing and the Red Zone bronze choir, there will be classes in chimes, mallets, a reading session, rhythm games, and bottle band. Neil Gertner will be on hand to help with bell maintenance. Breakfast and lunch is included in the registration fee of $25.

Plan to stay overnight on Saturday and attend the Tintabulations Handbell Concert on Sunday, October 23 at 2 p.m. at St. James Lutheran Church in Redding. For more information please go to the Northern California portion of the web site or contact me at schmitt@awwwsome.com.

Don't forget this fall and winter's big handbell events in Nevada: