Little Sonata for Bells
The Little Sonata for Bells was composed for four ringers with two bells each. The music is based on a static set of pitches which is organized in a variety of ways throughout the piece. The sonata is intended for a performance in parts or as a whole at the discretion of the director. The only 'extended' ringing technique required is that of a thumb damp (TD) which is found in most of the movements. Note in the Rondo that while the music is laid out on one stave, there is a disctinction between (R) and (LV) ringing between upstem and downstem notations.
performance duration: circa 8"
Performance score: $20
To order your copy: e-mail the composer or print order form
For more bell music by Frederick Frahm, go to the scores page.
"--one Sunday, upon which the bell choir was to perform, I learned that I was to be short of ringers (most handbell choir directors have had the same experience, I'm sure...) and I found myself in a quandary as to what music to have them do on fairly short notice. I knew I'd have four ringers and set out to write a piece for only eight bells, one for each hand. For practicality, I didn't want to do the usual set-up with tables and foam and music stands, etc. and so I decided to write music that could be performed standing in a circle with shared instrumental music stands. I arrived at a series of notes (somewhat out of the blue...) and worked to find a way to use the notes in chords, in melodies, in figurations, and in a variety of meters. While I had planned on one piece, I ended up with four pieces that could be gathered into a multi-movement work with an 8 minute duration. The Little Sonata for Bells is for me a fine example of working within tight compositional boundaries to create a piece that is practicable, which has a variety of textures and rhytmhic interests overseveral brief movements, and which by virtue of its unchanging set of bell pitches retains a consistent tonal character throughout."
Frederick Frahm, 2009