HANDBELL PROGRAM - SERVICES AND CONCERTS
2006 - 2007 (as of Nov. 1/06)

September 11th, 2001 will be a day that many of us will never forget. Hundreds of people, both civilians and emergency personnel lost their lives in the collapse of the World Trade Centre buildings. In what can only be described as a miracle, St Paul’s Chapel was not affected by the collapse – not one single window was broken. It’s amazing because the Chapel is directly across the street from the WTC site.

Playing at St Paul’s was our offering to the residents of New York and the United States as a remembrance not only of the lives that were lost but the lives that continue to be affected today. Music was our way of expressing what words cannot.

The Chapel continues to display the many tributes and messages of love, hope and peace from around the world. Personally, 2 tributes touched me deeply. The first is a collection of origami peace cranes from the families of the victims of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Thousands of these cranes have been lovingly draped along a section of a fence that has been moved into the Chapel. The second is a chasuble adorned with hundreds of crests from Fire, Police and Emergency Service departments from all over the world. We were fortunate to add a crest from the Toronto Fire Services.

Although the site has been cleaned up and the city is now preparing for the next stage in it’s healing, the stories of loss and tragedy will stay forever in the minds and hearts of the residents of New York City. I have heard stories of tourists going to New York and finding its residents cold, uncaring and rude. If that’s true, we certainly didn’t meet any of them. Everyone we met was helpful and kind. When they found out we were in New York to play at the Chapel, they were all very grateful. It was a privilege to present our musical offering in memory of those who did not come home September 11, 2001.

I am very grateful to the chaperones/drivers. Much planning and many hours went into what proved to be a wonderful and meaningful experience for us all.

The Handbell Choirs of St. John's York Mills Anglican Church released their debut CD, "Ring In Christmas", just in time for the 2002 holiday season and to excellent reviews.
We sold out our initial run of 1000! Another 1000 were pressed and we have reached the awesome goal of 2000 CD’s being played in many parts of the world over the Christmas Season. Ideas for marketing are most welcome.

This CD was beautifully recorded in spite of the practical challenges of an old church's clanging heat radiators, overhead flight path from Pearson airport and the interruption of the Yonge subway running every 5 minutes - in each direction. The beauty and fine recording quality of this CD is also a testament to the abilities of Ed Marshall, recording engineer, formerly of CBC Radio.

For more information about the CD and for sample sound clips, go to the Christmas CD Webpage.

"Very moving and quite magical........ I enjoyed the variety, particularly the selections which used accompanying instruments. I would look forward to a second CD." Rt. Rev. Michael Bedford-Jones, Bishop of York-Scarborough.

"The disc is musically very fine, beautifully produced and recorded, and the unique sound of handbells may be a kind of antidote to the annual avalanche of more standard Christmas recordings" Christopher Dawes, Organist & Former Director of Music, St. James Cathedral.

"Ring one up, way up, for Carolyn Martin and the St. John's York Mills bell choirs. Ring in Christmas brings a freshness and exuberance to the dearth of Christmas reruns and 'modernized'/ secularized humdrum. The variety of program and texture offered in this CD, truly is a long awaited 'new birth'. Remarkable accomplishments from a most talented group of amateur musicians and a tribute to God and St. John's York Mills" Robin Davis, B.Mus. Church Organist.

What happens when you check your e-mail one day and it says, "We are looking for a traditional handbell choir to record for and appear in a television commercial production for one of our clients. Please call"

Wednesday Oct. 4/2000 - after reading the above, I made the initial call to the music director of the company that put out the search.
Thursday, Oct. 5/2000 - Return call "he is meeting with another bell director on Friday - could I come in Tuesday of the following week?"
Tuesday, Oct. 10/2000 - Meeting in downtown Toronto to which I take a bell, a piece of music and a tape of my teenage choir playing on City T.V. a couple of years ago.
Wednesday Oct. 11/2000 - Frank, the music director, has sent a copy of the tape to the client whom I now know is SWISS CHALET. At 5:30 p.m. I receive a call awarding us the job. However, I have a commitment from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. I have accepted the job but up until now I have mentioned nothing to my ringers. Blood pressure rises as I wait 24 hours to see if I will be able to come up with the ringers for the job!
Thursday, Oct. 12/2000 - Frank wants me to meet with the film director who now has the copy of our tape to study. That evening from 9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. I contact my 14 teenage ringers and their parents. Twelve are on board. Whew!
Friday, Oct. 13/2000 - My meeting at The Big Film Company was to show the director a few different sized bells so he could see their reflective quality and get an idea of what he would be filming – bell, glove, hand and arm. From here I went to the music company once again to get a copy of the score that had been written for the commercial. It had been generated on a computer using a keyboard with bell sounds. A tight time commitment and a little inattention netted me a $20 parking ticket!
Saturday, Oct. 14/2000 - It was necessary to re-write the 30 second and the 15 second version of the commercial so the bell ringers could read it. The photocopier at the church was broken (perfect timing) so a trip to Kinkos was necessary to have the music for our practice Sunday night. At 10 p.m. I received a call from Frank just to let me know that the recording date has been changed from Wednesday to Thursday !!! Oops ! I now have to call 12 teenagers again to check school responsibilities for another day. The phrase ‘go with the flow’ is an important one to remember right about now.
Sunday, Oct. 15/2000 - Practice goes well. It is really a very simple tune, it’s just the exact timing required that needs work.
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday seem to fly by with calls from props, wardrobe, advertising agency and most importantly from the producer saying that just six ringers will be required for the filming portion of the commercial on Friday, October, 20.2000.
Thursday, Oct. 19/2000 - We meet at St. John’s at 9:00 a.m. to be at the recording studio by 10:00 a.m. Just to ensure things wouldn’t run too smoothly, one girl forgot about our recording session and went to school ! With some alterations we still made it to the studio on time. This part was a great learning experience for the teens and for me. The studio thought it would take 8 or 9 takes to get it right. Because of the need to be so exact in the timing we wore headphones with a click track going. With this metronome like sound in everyone’s ears we needed only 6 takes to wind it up. We celebrated with lunch out downtown close to the studio.
Friday, Oct. 20/2000 - We had a five hour call at the filming studio in west end Toronto, meaning that’s how long they thought it would take to film our part. The six of us arrived at 7:30 a.m. We waited and watched as each crew member did their part to set the scene. Our feet grew tired and our arms felt like they might not hold up too much longer as we held still, then played a segment along with the tape we had made the previous day. This process was done again and again as the director focused on the different bells. The director, producer, client, ad agency etc. were all enamored with our bells and the beautiful sound they made. With the exception of the man who had the idea of real handbells for the commercial most had never heard or seen handbells up close before. We finished filming in time for a bite of lunch provided to all the crew and people involved.

Would we do it again? - absolutely. It was a terrific learning experience for ringers and director alike. We were so pleased when the professional looking commercial aired in November advertising Swiss Chalet’s Festive Special. It was a bonus that the words St. John’s York Mills actually appeared on the screen. People in the congregation and staff members said they felt proud and one staff member said, "I know I just help you carry the bells Carolyn but I felt like it was me too when I saw our bells on T.V." Two local papers ran a picture and short article on our experience. Our last involvement with the commercial was being treated to the Festive Special at a Swiss Chalet just down the hill from the church at Yonge and 401. When our cheques came in a few weeks later, the teens had made the decision for each of them to give half back to the Handbell Fund at our church. Without the handbell program at the church this opportunity would not have been possible.

Many of us are so close to the handbell scene that we think everyone knows about it but the truth is not many people do and I believe that any time we can do something like this or perform in other musical venues or on T.V. we are helping to spread the word about a truly wonderful and unique way of making music. I would encourage all of you to seize the opportunity to share your music and your very special medium, handbells, with everyone you can.

Carolyn Martin
Handbell Director
St. John’s York Mills Anglican Church