What is Bell Ringing?
Bell ringing in the UK is done primarily to call people to church, and there is much more to it than just that!
Physical - To ring our bells we turn them in full circles by pulling on a rope, but you need to be skilful
rather than strong! This is despite the bells ranging from around 150kg to 650kg in weight. It’s much
more about co-ordination and skill than strength and, while you don’t need to be particularly fit, bell
ringing is a great way to stay active. A few of our team are in their 70s and 80s and climb the 62
steps to the ringing room at least twice a week!
Social – you’ll become part of a really friendly, welcoming team coming from a wide range of
backgrounds in and around Oswestry. We meet 2 or 3 times a week and go to The Bell after our
Thursday practice (though that’s not compulsory!) and have other social events during the year.
There is also the opportunity to ring with others from across Shropshire and further afield if that’s
what interests you as you progress.
Musical – you don’t need any musical skills to be a good bell ringer. Listening is the most important
sense we have when trying to produce quality bell ringing but you can even do a good job without that.
Mental – our music on the bells is produced by changing the order they ring in. We start with a
descending octave and then change that either with a conductor “calling the changes” or by the use
of patterns known as “methods”. These are our musical scores (again, no musical knowledge is
needed) and range from beautifully simple to devilishly complex, how far you progress with these is entirely your choice!
There is a lot of learning and many steps between...
Simple……………..…….……........................………and complex!!
Community – the bells in Oswestry form an important part of the town’s life. As volunteers, we don’t
just keep the bells sounding on Sundays but also for weddings, civic events, notable national
occasions (Coronations, Royal Weddings, Olympics to name but a few), remembrance Sunday, New Year’s Eve – and we run the teddy bear zip wire every Boxing Day!