Reaching for Bronze: An Event for Intermediate Handbell Musicians Aspiring to Become Bronze-Level Ringers.
February 28-March 1, 2020 • New Bern, North Carolina

Have you wanted to apply for Distinctly Bronze but worry you are not yet at the skill level to be accepted?  Then this is the event for you.  Scheduled concurrently with Distinctly Bronze East, this event will give participants the opportunity to learn three pieces from the DB East rep list under the direction of master teacher and conductor Monica McGowan and perform them with the DB musicians on their final concert.

During the event, instruction will be offered in building skills in treble, bass and battery techniques, as well as improving all aspects of musicianship.

Monica S. McGowan took her music education background – Bachelor of Science, Music Education, Chadron State College, Chadron, Nebraska – and found her life’s passion in handbells. She has taught and conducted handbell choirs and students in churches, schools and community groups throughout the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Puerto Rico and Hong Kong.

Monica conducted the All-Star Choir at the 2017 Handbell Musicians of America National Seminar in Anaheim, California and was Festival Conductor and Adjudicator for the 14th Hong Kong Handbell Festival in 2019.

Sheri Roach, an attendee at the 2019 Reaching for Bronze event says, “Don’t let the name Reaching for Bronze fool you. Although this event gives intermediate ringers an inside peek at what a Distinctly Bronze event is like, it is not just for those ringers who hope someday to ring at the bronze level. Last year I rang in the inaugural Reaching for Bronze event. The top clinicians in the country often direct the big festivals, where you are one in possibly several hundred ringers, and the most advanced choirs. Reaching for Bronze is one of those few opportunities for intermediate ringers to ring with one of the best clinicians in a relatively small group, where the focus is on each individual ringer learning how to advance to his or her next higher level of ringing ability.”

Learn more about this exciting opportunity to hone your handbell skills and take your handbell musicianship to the next level at HandbellMusicians.org/rfb.