Handbells are musical instruments that are typically made of brass or bronze, with an attached stem, loop, or leather strap for a handle. These bells come in various sizes, with the smaller bells producing higher pitches and the larger bells generating lower pitches.

The halls of Pollard United Methodist Church in Tyler echoed with the soft melodies of several handbells getting ready for a holiday concert.

Harmoniously practicing was a local quintet handbell ensemble called vibré, which means vibrate in French.

“Handbells vibrate the air around the casing to make their sounds, which is also why we keep the bell moving in a circular motion for the length of its note value,” said Gini Rainey, one of the ensemble members. “It helps radiate the sound toward the listener.”

Vibré Handbell Ensemble, or simply vibré, is set to perform for the community this Thursday at 7 p.m. at Pollard United Methodist Church, located at 3030 Copeland Road in Tyler.

According to artofhandbellringing.com, handbells are musical instruments that are typically made of brass or bronze, with an attached stem, loop, or leather strap for a handle. Handbells are played by a group of individuals known as ringers. These ensembles perform recognizable music with melodies and harmony, as opposed to the mathematical permutations used in change ringing.

vibré was founded in 1990 by Diana Sorrels as a way to keep ringing throughout the year, especially the summer.

“I started it because I wanted to get better and the only way I could get better was to ring more than what I was getting,” Sorrels said.

It was under advisement of Arnold Sherman for Sorrels to form her own group.

“He’s done a lot to advance the handbell,” she said. “He’s a very fine composer.”

Sherman is currently the Director of Music & Arts at Pollard United Methodist Church and is well-known for his work with handbells.

“We owe a deep debt of gratitude to not only him but to Pollard for letting us use the instruments and the rehearsal space,” Sorrels said.

Since the formation of the group, which was brought together by the common love for handbells and the instrument’s music, it has turned into its current quintet with Sorrels, Andy Martinez, Karen Mobbs, Rainey and Leslie Russel. They practice once a week for two hours.

According to Rainey, a lot of blood, sweat and tears go into rehearsals. And she means that quite literally.

“We wrapped our fingers with moleskin,” Sorrels said. “Having to deal with some skin irritation and blisters with the handles, we’ve gone through a lot of moleskin.”

All of the ringers were also members of East Texas Handbell Ensemble, a nationally acclaimed, professional bell ensemble ringing under the direction of Sherman. Additionally, several of the members have participated in the Distinctly Bronze event, an auditioned Handbell Musicians of America event for advanced ringers.

While you don’t necessarily have to be a professional musician to use handbells, it is important to know how to read sheet music.

“In this group, we have to be able to read music, understand the language on the page, understand the intent of the composer, as well as the cliff and bass notes,” said Martinez.

At practice, 46 handbells were all laid out like a giant piano. Ringers will often play with four bells at a time.

“You definitely have to make sure you remember which hand has which note or octave,” Rainey said.

Not only do the ringers learn the music, they also add a little bit of choreography to add more visual elements to the performance.

“Sometimes the choreography is harder than learning the music or playing the music because we have to keep out of each other’s way,” Rainey said.

The members of vibré have performed in numerous venues throughout the East Texas area, as well as playing regularly at their home base, Pollard United Methodist Church in Tyler.

vibré has served as faculty for several Handbell Musicians of America and Greater Dallas Handbell Association workshops. The ensemble has been presented in concert in Nashville at Pinnacle, an event for ringers who have reached the top of their art and at several District events.

Today vibré remains motivated by the challenge of a quality performance in a small ensemble setting. Perfecting a piece of music in the format suited for small ensemble ringing requires many hours of practice in very close quarters.

“Some people aren’t really big fans of handbells because they’re used to hearing more structured chords,” Mobbs said. “But we love the handbells. You can do so many different sounds… you could play rock and roll, you can play Christmas carols… they just have a variety of ways you can make music.”

Although church-based, this group loves to ring music in the classical genre and has recorded a CD, “If It Ain’t Baroque,” which is available for purchase through their Facebook page Vibré Handbell Ensemble.

Admission to Thursday’s concert is free but the group generously welcome donations to keep their ensemble going.

For more information, visit https://bit.ly/vibrehandbells.

WHAT: Vibré Handbell Ensemble in Concert

WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 21

WHERE: Pollard United Methodist Church, 3030 Copeland Rd. in Tyler

COST: Free, but donations accepted.

INFORMATION: https://bit.ly/vibrehandbells