Ringing Forums

Our tower is self funding to a large extent becaue we charge ringers to learn and make ourselves known locally, the result of which has been generous (but modest) legacies. We are aware that we hold the keys to a 400 year old activity and need to keep our bells ringing way past our lifetime. The bells were rehung in 2000 and need to be rung. Our ringing is modest, PB5, G5, & PB6 on a good day, but we ring all six every week and on Sundays. We hold a sim practice mid - week. We are considering the CCCBR Towards 2030 initiative to use ideas from that for our tower. Every tower should think about what it can do now - don't only wait for the CC. Many grass roots ringers, however, are keen to rattle off QPs etc but are not aware, or blind to the fact that they need to focus on their own tower for the future. Many years ago I rang at a tower where 8-spliced was a weekly event. One person went to university and we were back to PB8 and G7. Never take anything for granted! Plan for succession!

In business you need to follow the market, and in ringing that is what we need to do. — Roger Booth

Random thoughts! Perhaps we should ask - How would we organise ourselves today if there were no associations? Just as important, how would we see our relationship with the church? Ringing is a modern, exciting secular activity quite distant from the church except for the need to use their buildings and equipment, which by and large we take for granted. My own ringing experience has been based on the associations and church culture. I can ring to surprise royal standard. If I were to learn to ring today that target would be an almost impossible suggestion (speaking generally of course). I would need some sort of experienced group to help me learn but not a traditional association, save the training centres which teach me how to handle a bell, because many towers don't have a good training resource!. The church is a much more important stake holder. In my tower we have installed a six-bell sim, we hold a sim practice every week and between us we visit other practices, and ring quarter peals (and we ring on Sundays) - The association or district could not have provided this for us! Relationship with the parish church is spot on. We've raised money for the tower partly by being known in the community and organising ourselves strongly as a local band. Its hard work and we have been lucky! We do promote membership of the local association because it has one or two aspects which help the wider ringing community such as training centres and bell advice, and at £15 per annum there is nothing to lose!

It is important for the fabric of the church to be protected from pest ingress. This includes birds. Bird ingress can lead to damage to the fabric and clock/bell installations, significant costs in cleaning and can adversly affect human health. The problem should be taken to the PCC which has responsibility for the fabric and environment of the church. The challenge that PCCs and congregations have is to understand the value of the assets in the tower.They have no idea and generally only see it from the outside!

I update our tower website every few weeks. The front page contains a link to our latest news which is dated. https://gransdenbells.org/

I use a hoofer doofer for most things. If I can't find one of those I use a thingummy bob!

I do a very small amount of composing and in basic methods. I use Complib for this purpose. I sometimes write out my comps longhand and then use complib to prove them for me. I've had to learn how to drive it and I would say that I'm not a 'power' user, but its great fun.

Ringing serves very little real purpose except to individuals who love it.
People in my church and village community are very supportive, and often comment favourably when they hear the bells. But this is because I'm always going on about it.
I post on the village F/B page, our tower F/B page and my own F/B page. We Tweet (X) and Intagram. I talk about it endlessly at the village cafe and we ring whenever we can for any reason. As well as practice night I hold sim practices every Wednesday to try and bring along novice ringers. The vicar is great and supports us, but let's face it, ringing is simply a hobby. We always ring for church services, we enjoy doing this and it's part of the deal but its not the main event any more. We've got 80k (or whatever) worth of gear in the tower and we are determined to use it.
Alan C, I don't like to think of the art as archaic - its not old fashioned, its clever, an adventure, challenging and needs determination and committment, which are surely modern attributes. If it is old fashioned it's because ringers are stuck in the past.
It needs to be marketed correctly. That's difficult!
Ringers need to change their their gloomy and drab ringing rooms, where they can, and get away from the 'we've done this before and it didnt work' attitude, and start being more positive. Many ringers are ringing for themselves and not for the future, or have already given up because they won't ring just 3 on a Sunday!".
I will continue to work hard to save ringing, but having said all that, I fear that just as with global warming, we have passed the point of no return, we have dipped below the critical mass, and decline in ringing within ten years is inevitable in most areas, mine included!

On our website we don't mention age, we have an FAQ page which states "....but everyone learns at a different pace and this process can take longer." https://gransdenbells.org/faqs/

the CC is looking at renaming the method. — John de Overa

Why rename the method, that won't change anything. We can't undo what has been done, we only kid ourselves if we think we can!

The only other style I have seen in Devon is a single example of a spliced-in loop at the tail end, large enough for the hand to pass through. — Ted Steele

I seem to remember ringing in some Devon towers years ago where the tail ends were not tucked and the bells rung to their peals and down again without being stood. Ringers rang with coils. I can't imagine that Yorkshire tail ends were ever used in the West Country!

With this in mind I have collected a few recordings of bells in the Huntingdon District of the Ely DA. We ring our bells frequently but rarely record them.
In 1996 a recording was made by my late father in law of a quarter peal at Great Gransden. He used a reel to reel recorder. In 2000 the bells were re-tuned and rehung. The old recording is, as far as I know, the only record of what they sounded like at that time. The attached recording is 1 minute. About 45 seconds is of the old bells and it merges into the new bells. I hope you find it interesting.
We should all record our bells!

I find this is because teaching gets rushed to make progress not good progress — Martyn Bristow

Correct! I fear that this is a different thread and will go off topic!

Trying to push those learners beyond by-bell-number is pointless, and intensely frustrating experience for teachers. Better to accept they've decided to limit their progress and work on improving their skills at that level. — John de Overa

I completely agree John. But to add to your last sentence, they should work on their skills and striking at that level. Unfortunately, to my first hand knowledge, many ringers have little idea about what good striking is!

Any organisation that wants to perpetuate itself needs to — Alan C

accept change!!

It's good to have a positive approach. There are lots of things wrong with ringing! The old boys clubs are not listening, they have had their day and aren't interested any more. It takes individuals to make things happen, so take the initiative and organise something. I remember the first peal I organised. I miscalled it!! but it was a success in every other respect and it gave me a small network of ringers to build on. Perhaps start with quarter peals, not everyone is peal fit nowadays!. I suppose what I am saying is that we should be excited about our ringing. Enthusiasm is infectious, its too easy to say we've done all this before.

Finding your own group, while it sounds good would be harder, especially for lesser connected ringers. — Martyn Bristow

Martyn, I agree, of course. Have you canvassed your local branch on this. Part of their role is to help ringers at all levels.

It needs leading from the association level, as my branch isn’t even ringing quarter peals. — Martyn Bristow

Martyn, I don't think associations are very good at this. It's best to organise things yourself if you can. It's helpful if the branch is organising surprise practices but why not try to get that "critical" mass together yourself. Ringing doesn't have to be under the auspices of the branch or association.

I think one of the problems with raising and lowering is that many learners are not taught to do it soon enough. Raising and lowering are often seen as peripheral skills rather than esential ones. Confident control of tail end length is a critical skill for good ringing. — Phil Gay

I agree Phil, We teach ringing up first, before the learner can ring. This gives them a feel for the bell and managing the rope. Ringing down follows once basic bell control is established. Ringing up and down are critical safety aspects of ringing. If a novice has a problem e.g. the bell comes down a bit, they must know how to take coils and manage the bell safely.

I found it too intense and put it on the back burner!

If you were asked that question, how would you answer? — Vicki Chapman

Perhaps invite them to take photos and write an article about their visit - for the tower, the cathedral and for the Cathedral Music Trust. See if you can find a connection between ringing and singing. How many ringers are/used to be choristers? Is there a connection. Three of our ringers are in the church choir, although I appreciate that at a parish level the relationship is quite different.