BellFest! is an annual ringing festival for handbell ensembles, and a terrific way to perk up a long Minnesota winter. As many as thirty-five handbell ensembles and all of their ringing equipment gather on a chosen Saturday to ring under the direction of a guest conductor. The repertoire, learned ahead of time, is rehearsed in this massed setting, and a concert for the public is performed in the afternoon.
BellFest!2024 is here!
BellFest!2024 is on Saturday, March 2, 2024 at North Heights Lutheran Church in Arden Hills. Community and church ensembles are participating!
Several ensembles will perform solo pieces during the afternoon concert. That concert begins at 3:00 p.m. (doors will open at 2:35 p.m.). It’s not a contest – it’s a sharing time! Please consider adding this fun to the day.
Guest Conductor
Our guest conductor this year comes to us from New Jersey. Gillian Erlenborn is the Choral Director and Musical Theatre Teacher at Frelinghuysen Middle School, in Morristown NJ, teaching hundreds of students from diverse social and economic demographics. Since 2013 She has also served as the handbell and children’s choir director at Middlebush Reformed Church.
Gillian graduated from Westminster Choir College in 2018 with both a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and a Master of Arts in Teaching. She currently serves as an At-Large Member of the National Board for the Handbell Musicians of America.
She is a strong advocate for further implementing handbells and handchimes in K-12 Education and beyond. Gillian was a ringer and graduate assistant director of the Westminster Concert Handbell Choir under the direction of Kathy Ebling Shaw.
BellFest! 2024 Repertoire
| TITLE | COMP./ARR. | PUBL. | CAT. # | LEVEL |
| Acclamation in G minor | Karen Thompson | AEGHR | AG23046 | L2+ |
| Lift Up Your Heads | Patricia Hurlbutt | Choristers Guild | 2-3 octave: CGB 1279 3-5 octave: CGB 1280 | L3 |
| Dona Nobis Pacem | Karen Buckwalter | Choristers Guild | CBG1293 | L2 |
| Courage and Grace | Michael Joy | Hope | 3030 | L3 |
| Fantasy on All Creatures of Our God and King | Sandra Eithun | GIA | 10915 | L2+ |
If you have questions, please contact manager@bellsofthelakes.org.
