Christine Anderson

Biography

Christine D. Anderson resides at Pinon Pines, CA. She is a Clinician, conductor, composer, concert artist and Malmark sales representative. She is a Handbell Consultant for LifeWay Christian Resources and Editor for HANDBELLS, a music quarterly. Christine earned her music degree from Florida Atlantic University.

Her e-mail address is: vbronze@pacbell.net

Christine is married to Dr. Ross S. Anderson, professor at The Master's College and their family consists of children: Jonathan married to Julie; Jeri Lynn; David married to Krista; Diana married to Jim Fisher; and several grandchildren..

Christine said: I started writing for solo handbells in 1982 because there was very little solo music available at that time. It wasn't until 1987 that my first efforts were published, in Songs For The Solo Ringer. I had been turned down by 5 publishers, when I went back to Agape, and tried again. I now have over 70 arrangements in print, plus 3 videos, 2 CDs, and one cassette tape.

I hope to give solo ringers quality arrangements with technical challenges without being impossible to accomplish musically. One of my trademarks is always giving performance and choreography suggestions. I also choose piano arrangers who can support the solo line with interesting accompaniments.

Some of my favorite arrangements are: Be Still My Soul - Crown Him With Many Crowns - Jesus, Lover of My Soul - West Indies Carol - Rejoice, Ye Pure in Heart. The bells used range from A4 to C8; all bells above C7 are optional.

The difficulty level depends a lot on the tempo taken. Crown Him is quite challenging, but Jesus, Lover of My Soul is average. Most of my works are published by Agape, but I also have some with Jeffers, Concordia, and Genevox. West Indies Carol is with Jeffers, the others listed here are with Agape. There are many different techniques used, such as mallets, marts, shakes, shelley-shifts, traveling 2-in-hand.

I'm thrilled that solo ringing is so popular, but wish soloists would pay more attention to musicality and phrasing. Many ringers should be less concerned with trying to show off or ring arrangements that never should be attempted by a solo ringer. Don't try to imitate another ringer, but learn to ring musically; then put your own personality and style into your song. Follow the directions, then make your own improvements. Not everything should be rung fast - musicality and conveying the song's message is more important. And - have fun with it!

I welcome comments from anyone ringing my music. I will be happy to respond to any questions or problems you might have.