To stool or not to stool!

[Valerie Stephenson]

That is the question that from all your answers "depends on circumstance".  Personally, I've never had to use one, and in an auditioned choir it probably wouldn't work well... tho even there, if there was someone particularly handicapped BUT also a terrific ringer, might make for a good non-discriminatory example.  I recall a bass bell ringer from I truly can't remember where, in a top-notch choir impressing the devil out of us all with his ability to "navigate" on such a large range (maybe he even had one that rolled)?

    I'm only chiming in on this one as I'm going to DB East as I've done for many years, but because of a certain neuropathic condition, cannot stand for long periods.  I'll surely stand as much as possible and certainly for the concert.  I realize it "looks lazy" but is really not in most circumstances.  I may not bother others with this in the future... I just think it's too arbitrary to make a pat decision about stools OR any other guide that allows one to enjoy ringing.

    It's that old Golden Rule popping up once more.  LV

 

Valerie W. Stephenson
FL State Chair, Handbell Musicians of America
10379 Bigtree Ln, Jacksonville, FL 32257
904-880-1806 (phone/fax/preferred)
Did you ever see an unhappy horse?
Did you ever see bird that had the blues?
One reason why birds and horses are not unhappy is because
they are not trying to impress other birds and horses.
Dale Carnegie quotes
 
 

[TimR]

Before you buy a stool, be sure to try a sample.

[TimR]

On May 15, 7:25 pm, TimR <timothy...@aol.com> wrote:
> Before you buy a stool, be sure to try a sample.

Seriously - you knew I was kidding about the stool sample - ever watch
a drummer on the trap set? He's hitting snares, multiple toms,
several size and height cymbals, and whacking the bass drum with his
foot, reaching all around himself, all with speed and power, and does
it all night on a gig.

[Daniel Reck]

Hello everyone,

In one of the high-level groups I worked with, we have a young man who was wheelchair bound after having his leg was amputated due to cancer. For our concerts, he moves to a stool.  As in Tim's drum set example, I find that he is as nimble as anyone else from the waist up.

I believe that anyone who is can demonstrate the musicianship standard of a community ensemble, or any other group, should be allowed to participate. Reasonable allowances for physical disabilities should always be considered, and if necessary, invented for the occasion.

What's reasonable accommodation? Well, I've worked with marching bands with a student who was blind and another who was wheelchair bound. Both marched on the field and contributed fully to the performance of the band. The blind student was willing to memorize the music (as did everyone else, but he had to memorize it earlier so he could rehearse) and spend the time to memorize the steps and relative directions he had to move on the field; our accommodation was to carefully script the drill to reduce the possibility of accidental collision and to have someone shadow him in rehearsals to help him learn the spots. For the wheelchair bound student, he was willing to have a shadow move the chair as he played. Again, the drill was specially scripted to make room for the wheelchair without drawing undue attention. (Bands wear uniforms for a reason... everyone's supposed to blend in to the greater ensemble.)    Our goal was to fully integrate these students into the group so both they and the ensemble would derive full benefit from the participation.

So, for a physically disabled ringer, this should be a no brainer. They have a lifetime of experience dealing with their personal challenges, so you ask them for advice. (I know... duh... but you'd be surprised how many people forget to ask!)  Then you consult the -L. Then you ask experts in your area. You apply creativity and create a solution if one does not exist.  

And you make darn sure that this musician, who has shown the level of commitment and talent required of your ensemble, is fully included.  Because your group is MISSING OUT on that talent if you don't.

Okay, off my soapbox.

Best,

Daniel

--

  Daniel M. Reck, M.S.Ed.

  Media Director, Allegro Handbell Ensemble

  http://allegrobells.org

[colleengreen]

Amen. As a disabled ringer - thank you!!!

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[Stephanie Wiltse]

Well, as this conversation has meandered from one area of focus to another
(none of it bad, but simply the reality of a list of this kind), I'm
interested in returning to Chuck's original subject. I know Chuck pretty
well, and I am quite sure he'd be the last person to discriminate against
someone with a physical disability. I'm pretty sure he wouldn't have asked
unless he was dealing with more of an attitude problem.

I had an issue this past semester with two college girls who insisted on
having chairs right behind them during rehearsal. We are squeezed into a
very tight space as it is, and they ended up with their chairs crammed
between the table and a grand piano. Sometimes they would stand on one
foot and kneel the other leg on the chair while they rang. Sometimes they
would sit to ring; these were ordinary chairs that sat much lower than the
table. Even if I could get them to stand up, the moment I stopped the
group for anything at all, they would sit. Then of course, it took time
for them to stand back up and refocus to ring again. Out of 14 students,
these were the only two who insisted on this. Every time I spoke to them
directly about wanting them to stand during the rehearsal, they refused.
One insisted that she would faint if she had to stand for that long.
(We're talking 90 minutes). I was left feeling that this was simply bratty
behavior, but what can you say when someone insists they are going to
faint?

About halfway through the semester, they both showed up the same night
with drop slips. So here we were with a few weeks before our final concert
with no Position 5 and 6 ringers.

Still, the other students cheered when these two girls dropped! Another
student confided that the rest of the class was planning to come to me
about these two attitude problems that were putting a damper on their
enjoyment of the class. We did manage to find replacements, and the rest
of the semester was an absolute pleasure.

I don't want to speak for Chuck, but I'm guessing his issue is more that
of dealing with a "problem child" and not someone with a legitimate
physical problem. And I'd guess that many of us have dealt with various
kinds of personality issues that bring tension and unpleasantness to
rehearsals.

And back to legitimate stool issues (the terminology of which is making me
squirm), my community group has a "pregnancy stool" that everyone is
afraid to sit on!

Stephanie Wiltse
Grand Rapids MI

[TimR]

On May 16, 3:40 pm, "Stephanie Wiltse" <wil...@iserv.net> wrote:
>Another
> student confided that the rest of the class was planning to come to me
> about these two attitude problems that were putting a damper on their
> enjoyment of the class.

I think in this case you've diagnosed attitude problems correctly, but
sometimes cultural ignorance is the problem.

People do come to bells without previous musical experience and are
completely unaware of rehearsal etiquette and the huge number of
unwritten rules that ensemble musicians take for granted.

Sometimes education is enough to solve it (though you clearly tried
hard with those two).

My own kids have ended up in activities where they weren't sure what
was expected. But they looked left, looked right, copied what was
going on, and fit in until they knew the rules. Some kids are
oblivious.