Life rings anew with restored handbells at Hill United Presbyterian
Bells rung out from Hill United Presbyterian Church Sunday afternoon, Oct. 8, many of them for the first time in front of an audience in more than 50 years.
The church recently received a gift of three octaves, or 25 bells, of the rare Petit & Fritsen handbells, which were built in Holland in the 1690s and purchased by Covenant United Presbyterian Church in the 1950s.
On Sunday, after a long wait for the bells to be refurbished, Nancy Slezak, handbell director at Hill U.P. Church, conducted the bell choir of about 18 people during a dedication ceremony for the handbells.
“They are beautiful, just very different,” Slezak said. “We are so glad to be able to preserve the history of the bells made in Holland ... We’re having fun with them.”
The bells had been found in an attic at the former location of Covenant United Presbyterian Church when church leaders were moving to a new location this summer. The Rev. John Silbert, pastor of Covenant United Presbyterian Church, said during the dedication Sunday that he was happy Slezak was so enthusiastic about taking the bells, because they are not made anymore.
“They go back to the 1660s; their system of casting bells gives them their own unique sound,” Silbert said. “It’s nice that they are still around.”
The choir played several selections at the dedication, including “Day Break,” “The Church’s One Foundation” and “Shalom Chaverim.” Slezak commented that playing handbells is not like playing most other instruments, because members of the choir play their bells only at specific moments.
That technique was most evident when the three members of Hill Youth Trio performed “Day Break,” because each of the young girls could be heard counting to four over and over again throughout the tune.
Jonathan Harper said he joined the handbell choir about a month ago, and had to learn quickly that there is more technique to playing the instrument than it initially seems.
“The style in which you play them is different. It takes more pressure to get them to gong,” Harper said. “Then you raise it out and the sound kind of moves out with it.”
Harper added that he feels blessed to have joined the group right when the restored handbells were given to Hill U.P. Church.
“This has been really fantastic,“ Harper said.
The Rev. Leigh Benish, pastor at Hill U.P. Church, said the audience that attended the service Sunday was larger than usual, probably because many people wanted to hear the restored handbells in action. She commended Slezak and the members of the handbell choir for creating something new from the old instruments, and that although they are being used by new musicians, their purpose is the same.
“This has been a labor of love by Nancy and the choir,” Benish said. “These bells have played many different songs in many different places and by many different people, but all for the same purpose: to glorify God.”
Slezak equated the longevity of the bells to the sound they make when played correctly; their ring reverberates in the air until it becomes part of the air.
“We are very, very blessed to have these bells,” Slezak said. “We are so glad to get to preserve the history of them.”
