TEMECULA – The Southern California Region of the Handbell Musicians of America (formerly the American Guild of English Handbell Ringers) will hold its annual Spring Ring workshop, festival and concert on Friday and Saturday, April 19-20 at Hope Lutheran Church.

The event will bring about 200 handbell ringers from all over California together to rehearse as a group, hone their skills, and work with experts, including massed conductor Michael Glasgow of Raleigh, North Carolina, renowned composer, conductor, teacher, and Director of Music Ministries at North Raleigh United Methodist Church.

On Saturday, April 20, at 5 p.m., the Spring Ring participants will present a free concert, open to the public, at Hope Lutheran Church. All the ringers will present massed, single choir, and small ensemble pieces, including both arrangements of familiar tunes and original handbell music.

In addition to many church and school handbell choirs, the Advertisement

[ Pala Mesa Resort ] concert will feature Bronze Vision, a select group of intermediate to advanced ringers put together for this event. Originally, English handbells were cast by bell foundries to be small scale duplicates of the heavy tower bells used for "change ringing," the practice of ringing tuned bells in mathematical patterns.

Tower ringers could practice change ringing on handbells in the warmth and comfort of a pub without disturbing the neighbors. In time, ringers began to play melodies on the bells, and it became a widespread musical art in Britain.

The two world wars of the 20th century devastated the mostly-male British teams, but in the meantime handbells had spread to America, where the art of ringing took root and grew from a curiosity to the expressive and uniquely musical experience it is today.

Hope Lutheran Church is located at 29141 Vallejo Ave.