Tenth Annual Handbell Festival Set for November 23 in Clovis

Date: 11/15/2002
Contact: Wendel Sloan at 505.562.2253
Reporter: Dr. William Wood

PORTALES – The tenth annual Eastern New Mexico Fall Handbell Festival will be held at First United Methodist Church, 1501 Sycamore, Clovis, at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 23.

The public is invited to hear the 130 handbell ringers from eastern New Mexico and west Texas in concert at 4 p.m. in the church Fellowship Hall. Massed ringing and individual choirs will perform selections chosen from holiday, folk and sacred repertoires.

Admission to the concert is free and an offering will be taken to help defray festival expenses.

Guest Director Monica McGowan, Lakeville, Minn., will conduct the massed ringing. McGowan is director of Twin Cities Bronze, a Minneapolis-St. Paul community ensemble, and serves on the national board of the American Guild of English Handbell Ringers.

The ENMU Brass ensemble, an ENMU vocal ensemble, and Clovis flautists Janet Barnard and Gail Noffsker will join the ringers for the concert.

Twelve handbell choirs participating in the festival will come from Clovis, Portales, Tucumcari, Roswell, Lovington, Eunice, New Mexico, and El Paso and Denver City, Texas.

Chairman of the festival committee is Dr. William Wood, Eastern New Mexico University Professor Emeritus of Music. Other committee members are: Dr. David Gerig, dean of the College of Fine Arts at ENMU; Jan Smartnick of KENW, Dennis McFarling, First Baptist Church of Portales, and Brian Uerling, ENMU graduate student and music teacher in the Clovis Municipal Schools.

For more information, please contact one of the committee members. Dr. Gerig can be reached at 505.562.2373.