Scandinavian Bell Ringers from Europe

              The Scandinavian Bell Ringers
From Europe
The Musical Sensation of the Time
The exact manipulation of these perfect bells by the players has given a new charm; of jang¬ling there is none, neither is there any clamor-our jarring, or echo, to mar the even flow of the production.
The press, the critic and the public in all cities in which these men have played, have been unanimous in their praise of the surpris¬ing beauty and charm of the music extracted from the bells they play. In fact their work is a revelation to all who hear them, of the pos¬sibilities, never before suspected, music in bells.
For years these five bell ringers have devoted all their energies to developing bell-music and the range of their achievement covers the whole gamut of instrumental musical accomplishment, embracing a wide repertoire which includes the most glorious symphonies, as well as the sweet folk music of the romantic Kingdoms of the North Sea.
This is part of a report in the Springfield Union. Dec. 29, 1923, of the performance of the Scandinavian Bell Ringers at their American debut in the Auditorium, Springfield, Mass.,  using a set of  12 5  bells.
"It was not only the music of silvery bells that moved the audience to thunderous applause but the symphony of human motion that caught the crowd as it watched the five men swiftly whisk bells off the blue and yellow draped table, shake them with a deft twist of the wrist and deposit them again in their cor¬rect places. The Bell Ringers worked as one man, drawing from their 125 bells that ranged from 15 pounds to a few ounces each, the most difficult and brilliant runs and melodies. 'Morrison's Meditation,' timed slowly at the be¬ginning, was accentuated in its beauty by the graceful, slow motions of the Ringers. With the quickening of the tempo came a swift choppy body movement by the performers and then a soft, swaying, lilting motion as the sound of their bells died away into the rustle of an audience getting ready to pour forth a storm of applause."
Springfield Union, January 14,  1924. Springfield,  Mass.
"The Scandinavian Bell Ringers, returning for a second time within three weeks, lost none of their effectiveness by the repetition. The silvery music of their bells was as silvery as ever and the charm of the music held the audi¬ence as easily and completely as it did two weeks ago. As they played an unconscious compliment was paid them by the speaker and others on the platform: During the playing of Parlof's 'The Blacksmith's Shop in the Forest,' all the feet on the platform marked silent time, now fast, now slow. But always the feet moved and the eyes were fastened upon the graceful movements of the players."
GEORGE  RINGCHRIST, IMPRESARIO
67 BILTMORE STREET
SPRINGFIELD. MASS.
Phone 2-6127
(For telegrams use Western Union)
he Scandinavian Bell Ringers From Europe
Inside of a few months time the Scandinavian Bell Ringers created a sensation in America, dropping as it were from the skies, unheralded and unknown, these wonderful players upon bells have thrilled thousands who have heard their exquisite music with enthusiasm.
Fifty years ago, as the old folks will remem¬ber, a band of Bell Ringers came from Switzer¬land, and for two or three years delighted the American people with their bell music. Then they returned to Europe, and since that time no successors worthy of the name have been heard in this country until now.
They have developed and beautified the art of bell ringing a hundred-fold, and after years of incessant study and hard work have put bell ringing to the forefront of musical art. They are five skilled players manipulating 200 special constructed bells, ranging in weight from a few ounces to 18 pounds.
They do not strike these bells to produce the notes, but by grasping leather thongs attached to the bells, and with delicate skill jerking them in rapid succession, they send forth sweet music in perfect harmony, as no other bell ringers have ever done.
The Mission of the Scandinavian Bell Ringers in America
is to reveal the extent of their accomplishment, the boundless range of bell music, the perfect musical consonance attainable, the rhythmic ex¬pression and charming resonance. Ordinarily the suggestion of bell-music is received with a mental reservation. Curiosity is aroused rather than the anticipation of unalloyed pleasure. But under the spell of these five men all other impressions are lost in the delight which fol¬lows the superb artistry displayed. After hear¬ing them play in Massachusetts, a well-known critic exclaimed, "Such bell-music as this has never been heard before."
The set of bells is the largest set of hand¬bells in use today. They are all special bells made from the specifications of the players which are the results of long experience. In order to have these bells made, the Bell Ringers were compelled to go to England, and employ the only firm which to-day can make perfect bells to any design, an ancient firm which made the great bells of three English cathedrals cen¬turies back. It is because these bells are formed according to the results of expert knowledge gained by persistent and untiring experimenting that they give off tones and effects of sounds that no other hand-bells have or even do produce.