Thomas A. Alspaugh
A band of ringers
has many similarities with performance groups of all sorts,
and the goals and techniques of leading practices and performances
has much in common with those for other types of groups.
I've led ensembles of various types,
run rehearsals and sectionals,
and overseen performances.
Here is what has worked for me and for many others
over the centuries,
translated into ringing terms.
Click on a
to see details.
For an Effective Practice
-
Have a goal and a plan.
Here are some possibilities:
-
Goal:
Improve the band's striking.
Plan:
Ring Rounds and Rotate
.
-
Goal:
Get everyone to ring with a handstroke pause.
Plan:
Talk through the concept of unbalanced hand and backstrokes.
Demonstrate.
Talk through and demonstrate counting the compass.
Get the ringers you know are counting the compass when they ring
to talk about how it helps them.
Ring Rounds and Rotate
,
standing behind the treble to make sure
he/she leaves an appropriate pause,
and behind the tenor
(who moved from the treble at the last rotation)
to coach him/her on keeping the same imbalance
no matter which bell they are ringing.
-
Goal:
Get everyone ringing all the bells.
Plan:
Ring Rounds and Rotate
until everyone has rotated back
to the bell they began on.
-
Goal:
Start learning Plain Hunt on N
(with a band that can ring Plain Hunt on
).
Plan:
Send a message a week before telling everyone of this goal.
Point the ringers who are willing to make the effort
toward material to read in preparation.
Let ringers choose their bells,
but take the treble yourself
or steer a reliable ringer to it.
Listen and watch to see where the band gets off;
count rows so you know where in the chart the problem turned up.
Listen to what the ringers want to say,
and guide them into more constructive patterns
if they are getting themselves stuck.
Stand behind everyone one after another to offer suggestions.
-
Be ready to deviate from the plan and take on new goals
if circumstances demand.
If the band is already meeting the goal,
then move on to the next one
or (if there wasn't a next one)
come up with a new one.
If the plan isn't working,
try something else.
Frequently the problem is not where you thought it would be,
so attack that instead.
-
Begin with a ritual
that guides everyone into the proper state of mind.
It seems that a performer,
no matter in what discipline,
typically begins each session with the same warmup;
not the same warmup for all performers or all disciplines,
but for a particular performer
the same warmup.
It acts as a connection to previous sessions,
reminds the performer of the state of mind they are striving for,
and gets them focused on what they are doing.
For bellringing
a widely-used warmup seems to be ringing the bells up in peal.
By the time the bells are up,
the ringers are in their ringing state.
-
Isolate the problem,
whatever it is,
and focus the work on that.
Perhaps the reason Plain Hunt on N isn't going well,
or that ringers aren't ringing with a handstroke pause,
is because they are rushing into leads
rather than waiting a beat and then leading.
So focus on this problem
by ringing
Places in 1-2,
stopping when each pair of ringers seems to have it
and rotating the band two places to the right
to give two more ringers a chance.
-
Don't ask of them more than they can do.
It will just frustrate and discourage them.
Chances are that the band will actually regress
rather than make progress.
-
But do ask for their best,
and for something that requires them to stretch.
Otherwise why are you bothering to hold a practice,
and why are they bothering to attend?
People enjoy doing the best they can do,
and they like to be in a situation where they can
show they can do it.
-
Finish up with something they can feel was an accomplishment.
It will help them to think of ringing as something
they really enjoy,
and that they want to do well.
They'll come to the next session
excited and with anticipation.
For an Effective Performance
-
Choose things the band can do well.
It's far better to do something easy well,
than to make a hash of something more difficult.
The listeners probably can't tell the difference
between something easy and something difficult,
but they can certainly tell the difference
between something done well
and something done poorly.
For example,
at my present tower
some of the ringers feel that the
36 Call Changes
is the most appropriate thing for service ringing.
However,
at present the band can't get through them.
It's much better to
call some simple changes
(like to Queens and back)
in which the band never strays too far from Rounds
and returns to them frequently,
and in which the treble and tenor stay in place
and reliable ringers on those bells
can keep the band in line.
-
If you have several things for the band to do,
start with something they know and enjoy,
to settle them and get everyone ready
for later things that may be more difficult.
-
If it's not working,
stand the band,
perhaps say a few words of encouragement,
then move on to the next thing.
Attribution