Pizzazz (Gay and Alan Cooper and Carla Runciman) have recently taken a Trinity/Guildhall ensemble recital exam as a handbell trio. This exam can be taken at first recital, intermediate (about grade 5) and advanced (about grade
levels. Not knowing appropriate equivalences of our handbell music and grade levels we checked on the kinds of demands made for grade exams as well as the specific elements looked for in the ensemble exams and we chose to go for the intermediate one. Some of our pieces are set as instrument solos at that level (eg Sugar Plum Fairy) and some pieces had rhythmic variation (eg Harmonic Convergence by McChesney has 3/4 -6/8 alternations).
We set up our tables (having given warning this would take time) and then played our recital with just the examiner in the room with us. In addition to those pieces mentioned we also played Cherry Tree Blossom and Ragtime Ramble as four in hand trios and Prayer from Hansel and Gretel and Come Thou Almighty King arranged Linda Lamb. So four pieces are published as handbell trios and two were twelve bell pieces. The examiner looked official while we played (15 minute recital) but afterwards asked us some friendly questions about bells and how we play them.
A week later we got the comments on our pieces and marks. The individual items had comments but were marked as a group. The comments were all positive. We got full marks for sections on presentation, recital programme and programme notes and our total mark was 92 out of 100. The threshold mark for Distinction is 87 so we came out well above.
This has shown that the music exam system in this country can include teams of handbell ringers. Particularly for young groups who may feel deprived that they can't move on up the grades like other instrumentalists (or their parents perhaps) the possibility exists now to get an examination by a professional examiner like other musicians.
For us we are wondering about trying for the advanced recital exam one day.
