Malmark vs. Schulmerich

[Nicholas Barnard]

Dear Handbell-Lers,
First, thank you for opening this email instead of just deleting it out of hand. ;-)

I've had the pleasure and responsibility of having to call both handbell manufacturers this week, and to ship one broken bell off for repair, so that we do have two separate and unique handbell manufacturers in the United States is prominently on my mind.

I went and searched through this incarnation of HB-L and I really didn't find much discussion of the differences between the different manufacturers products, with the exception of Nancy Tipton commenting on the Malmark vs. Schulmerich issue as a tangent to a thread on the proper polish to use. You can see that message here: https://groups.google.com/d/msg/handbell-l/-RS0Tj0i6LY/HmU6q-Gmi_cJ

So here is how I came to the desire to write this email. I like Schulmerichs for multiple reasons that I'll get to later. This being said there I've been told directly by handbell musicians that I deeply respect, specifically Rima Greer and Michelé Sharik, that they prefer Malmarks. My initial non-verbalized though upon hearing this was "Huh? Why do they think that?" However, knowing that this is one of those irrationally polarizing issues within our community I didn't ask a the time.

So I have some suggestions for keeping this a civil and productive discussion:
* State your opinion as in the positive, not the negative. (e.g. Say: "I like the durability of Schulmerich's springs" instead of saying "I think Malmark's springs are chintzy.")
* State your background and experience with both manufacturer's bells.
* Recognize the goal isn't to convert people who like the opposite manufacturer's bells to your side, it is to learn why and what folks who prefer the other manufacturer's bells see, and why they see it.
* For simplicity and sanity, let us keep this to handbells only, not chimes or other products.


So I'll start.
I've played and performed on both manufacturer's bells. My initial handbell experience was with three and then four octaves of Schulmerich bells for six years in middle and high school. I didn't play bells for about seven years, then started playing on three octaves of Malmarks at my church. a few years later I started playing in the Resonance Ringers Handbell Quartet on three and then four octaves of Schulmerichs. In a normal week I'll spend 40 minutes leading rehearsal on Malmark chimes (okay yes, I mentioned chimes, sorry.), an hour rehearsing on Malmarks in a 11 person, 3 octave choir, and five hours rehearsing with the Resonance Ringers which is a 4 person 4 octave handbell ensemble. I'm the primary repair bell maintenance guy for my church's bells, and I share bell repair responsibilities for the Resonance Ringers.

My preferred Handbell manufacturer is a Schulmerich. I admit that this may be because I learned to love ringing on Schulmerichs and didn't know Malmark bells existed for over ten years after I first started ringing. I like Schulmerichs because:
* Their mellow sound.
* The index pin, it makes reassembling bells exceptionally easy.
* The handles. They're narrow enough so that I find 4IH and Shelly are easier. They also have a rougher surface that better accommodates quartet ringing (weaving, passing, etc.). They're all black. Bells are not a keyboard instrument.
* I like the durability and design of Schulmerich's springs.
* The textured interior of the bells, I mostly just like that look.
* The Master Touch hand guard disc. I like the look of it, as well as the fact it'll guide my hand more gracefully into the right spot if I misaim while attempting to pickup bells.
* Mallets - The clickless rubber guard of Schulmerich mallets are nice for the times I miss aim and get the side of the handle instead of the mallet head. (Mallets of coursecan be used with either manufacturers' bells, and yes, the best way to mallet is correctly so you don't have the problem that the clickless rubber guard addresses.)


Respectfully,
Nick Barnard
Seattle, WA
Bell Repair Guy at University Unitarian Church (which plays on 3 octaves of Malmark Handbells)
Resonance Ringers Handbell Quartet (which plays on 4 octaves of Schulmerich Handbells)
Intergenerational Choirchime Ensemble Director at University Unitarian Church (which plays on 3 octaves of Malmark Choirchimes)

[nbwa...@aol.com]

I'll bite.  Our church set is Schulmerich an I have played for six years on the Malmark set of Bells of the Sound.  I prefer the mellow sound of the Schulmerichs for the church setting that we have, and it suits a lot of the music I write quite well.  I can see concert choirs preferring Malmarks because I think they are a bit brighter and project a bit better in a large space.

Nan Beth Walton

[Thomas Simpson]

I think I'm gonna pass this time around.




Thomas




Sent from my iPhone

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[mic...@thegoldendance.com]

You feelin' ok, Thomas?

[Nancy Hascall]

Since this isn't going to be a "which brand is best" argument (can we count on that?), I guess I'll chip in.

Every group I'm currently (or recently) associated with happens to have Schulmerichs. (Not really sure why, but there seem to be a lot more Schullies in Portland than Malmarks.) I learned to ring on them 30+ years ago, and bought my own 3-1/2 octave set about 12 years later for solo ringing. I originally chose Schullies because because that's what the church had, and I thought I should stick with the same brand in case I ever needed to borrow an extra bell or two (which I've done many times.) I like their mellow tone and find them very responsive to nuances of expression. Also the narrower handles are friendlier for my style of ringing (extensive use of traveling 4ih). I also swear by Select-a-Strike clappers, rather than quick-adjust, for the ability to finely voice the bells.

That said, I have to add: I used to be something of a snob about Schullies, thinking Malmarks sounded "shrill" -- I toured Japan with Sonos a few years ago and performed on their Malmarks. To my surprise, I discovered I like them a lot too. The sound is definitely on the brighter side, but pure and clear -- not at all shrill unless you play them that way. (It's quite possible to make either brand sound good or bad, depending on your technique.) It may be true that Malmarks carry farther in a large space, but if you voice Schullies on the bright side and learn to play dynamically, they carry well, too.

I like the shiny innards of Malmarks (and they must be easier to clean, right?) The color of the handles doesn't make a particle of difference to me, but the width is an issue. I don't much like playing triple treble octaves on Malmarks, because they are uncomfortably wide. It's also easier to link Schullies into 6ih clusters. And I can 4ih lower with Schullies than I can with Malmarks, due to both width and weight.

When I recorded a solo CD on my Schullies, I had to put gaffers tape on the edges of the handles to silence the clicking noises they made when I played 4ih. Not a big deal in live performance, but really showed up in recording. I'm not sure whether Malmark handles would be any quieter, but they do seem to be softer to the touch, so maybe.

Can't comment on Malmark service, but Schulmerich has been pretty good to me over the years.

My 2 cents.
Cheers,
:-) Nancy Hascall

[Thomas Simpson]

Just tired. And really have nothing new to contribute!

Thomas

Sent from my iPhone

[TimR]

My church has Schulmerich, and we're happy with them.

I just played a festival, ringing with another choir, on Malmarks.

We'd be happy with them, too. But they did feel different, and I had
to adjust a bit.

I thought they felt lighter, rang soft easier, and were hard to get
really loud. So I'd have to get used to them if I rang them a lot.

I've repaired Schulmarks (basic stuff, springs etc.) and it doesn't
seem hard. Looking at the Malmarks I used this weekend, that doesn't
seem hard either. Adjustment is screwdriver vs nut driver, not a lot
of difference (although that Malmark spring adjustment is a bit on the
strange side).

[Rima Greer]

I was not going to weigh in on this, but I can't help myself. :-)

A LOT depends on the adjustment of the bells, and what you used to. If you're used to one kind, the other will feel weird. Badly, or even just differently adjusted bells can make a huge difference in how comfortable they are to ring, and how much control you have. I prefer my bells adjusted absolutely equally, and I ignore the strike point direction. I just don't think it's important, and I have never found anyone who could reliably tell me which direction I was ringing just by listening. I think bell technology has moved beyond the need for the strike point direction.

Here are the reasons that I almost always choose to ring Malmark:

For the kind of linear music that I write and arrange, Malmarks have a stronger fundamental that works well. They might sound "tinny" to folks used to ringing Schuls, which have less fundamental and more overtones, but for linear stuff, Malmarks hold a melody and a descant well on their own, without doubling.

I also like the spring. The "point of no return" on a Malmark is WAY later than on a
Schul. It makes them "harder" to ring, but with practice, easier to control. And again, a LOT depends on the adjustment. Many folks like Schuls because they "ring themselves" - when you reach the earlier "point of no return" the spring mechanism takes over, and the bell literally rings itself. With Malmarks, you have to do all the work. But because of that, you can make more nuanced decisions. It's a trade off. For me, control is more important.

The soft handles on Malmarks are a plus for folks doing 4IH for hours. For me, the fatter handle issues are irrelevant, because I almost always lock my handles, making my 4IH half the size of an unlocked setup.

Finally, let me say that I'm not ALWAYS wedded to Malmarks for everything. In fact, when I bought my chimes, I chose Schul. Oddly enough, I thought they blended better with the Malmark bells, and I liked the shape... They were easier for me to 4IH.

Does this make sense?

Rima
Www.campanilemusic.com


Sent from my iPad

[Blanche Marie Lewis]

The Magic of Bronze consists of ringers and directors from a variety of
churches with a variety of bells. When we bought our own bells, we had lots
of discussions over what to buy and came up with a set up that we REALLY
like!
The middle 2 octaves (G4-G6) are MalMarks. Their sound and feel works
"right" for the battery for us.
The outer octaves (below G4 and above G6) are Schulmerich. Their handles and
sound work much better for us for both the bass and treble sounds. We find
that it's much easier to 4iH the small ones and the bass handles are a
better width and firmness for rapid switching.
Simply for consistency, we applied a thin piece of white sports tape to the
handles of the naturals on the Schullies so that the look is fairly equal up
and down the table.
It works for us! We really like how the sounds blend.
When we bought chimes, we stuck with Schulmerich for the reasons Rima
outlined in her response.

I, personally, direct at one church that has Schulmerichs and another church
that has Malmarks. They're both fine. I've been trained to repair both types
and don't have any war stories of one over the other. Only war stories would
be from people who let a simple repair go until it became a major repair!

Blanche Marie
(really enjoying the discussion)

[Linda Krantz]

I'm a little behind in my emails, but I wanted to ditto what Rima has said about the Malmarks.  But I'd like to add a few things.  

I learned to ring on Schulmerichs and didn't know there was anything else out there until I attended my first festival.  In the church space for which they were purchased, they were beautiful.  The church has very live acoustics, and the warmth of the Schullie tone was lovely there.  I had a 4iH quartet that used Campanile's locked handle style, and they were easy to ring in that format as well.  However, for the life of me I could never take the darn thing apart to change a spring and get the thing back together again (and I am pretty mechanically inclined).   But IN THAT SPACE, and for what I refer to as CHORAL ringing (as opposed to solo), the Schulmerichs were the perfect choice.

As my experience  broadened and my focus became more on solo ringing, I purchased Malmarks for my personal solo set.  I love them for a variety of reasons, but mostly because as Rima said, when you are playing linear music (as I do mostly as a soloist) they have (in my opinion) a superior sound.  As a soloist and a very visual learner, I love the white and black handles.  I know where my bells are all the time, and it's really easy to know if I'm about to pick up a wrong bell.  I feel that I have much more control over the sound I can produce.   I love the feel of the handles, and I think (and this might just be my perception), they are a little lighter.  And I can take them apart and put them back together easily and quickly.  

Now when I play on Schullies (which I still do often) I find it much more difficult to produce a consistent tone and I think it is more difficult to get a really good fff on them, but that may just be the set I am working with at the time.

Personally, I think that both manufacturers have pros and cons, and so you have to look at the space in which they will be played and what sounds good to YOUR ear.  I don't think it would be fair to determine one better than the other.  They are different, which allows us a choice!  I think that is a good thing.

Linda Krantz

After silence, that which comes closest to expressing the inexpressible is music.

[Stephanie Wiltse]

OK, sure, handbells are not a keyboard instrument. But the piano
keyboard is a strong foundation for many musicians. I just heard a
percussionist say that the piano keyboard is to musical learning as
the qwerty keyboard is to keyboard learning. It's a beginning point
for many of us when it comes to understanding high and low and sharps
and flats.

I started out on Whitechapels. I love my Malmarks, but mainly because
I have had very little exposure to Schullies over the years. I find
the white/black handles very helpful in my personal orientation of
where the bells are on the table. I also like being able to look at my
ringers and see if they have the right bells in their hands.

By the way, one of my college sets of Malmarks still has the old style
handle with different enharmonic note names on different sides of the
handles. Now THAT is no fun when solo ringing! :-)

Stephanie in Grand Rapids MI

[TimR]

On Apr 29, 4:42 pm, Stephanie Wiltse <stephanie.wil...@gmail.com>
wrote:

> OK, sure, handbells are not a keyboard instrument. But the piano
> keyboard is a strong foundation for many musicians. I just heard a
> percussionist say that the piano keyboard is to musical learning as
> the qwerty keyboard is to keyboard learning.

Yes, but remember that the qwerty was designed to be inefficient, and
the dvorak keyboard is far better. Only tradition and stubbornness
keeps qwerty alive.

Similarly, the piano keyboard layout is driven by the need to use long
levers to play a mechanical instrument. If you don't have that
requirement, due to electronics, the Wicki-Hayden is far superior.

[Nancy Tipton]

True . . . but even my beginning ringers who have never played piano understand what a traditional piano keyboard looks like, and it's very simple to relate the bell handles to piano keys. And when my position 4 ringer picks up a white handled bell in his left hand, and we're in the key of F major, I can recognize the problem before giving the downbeat and can signal him to change to a Bflat before something ugly happens in front of an audience. I think Stephanie's point was from a purely practical standpoint, and I agree with her that white and black handles are definitely a pro for Malmarks, if we're listing pros and cons. 

[Nicholas Barnard]

Hello Everyone,
Elke White is having some trouble posting to the list, so with her permission I am forwarding her reply to the list.

Nick

Begin forwarded message:
When I joined the original Handbell-L in 2002, the Malmark versus Schulmerich debate was already a more or less taboo subject. A search of the archives provided the answer for why this was the case. In the early years, M vs S questions came up from time to time, and the discussions were often completely subjective and, well, not always terribly helpful. Folks would describe the different brands with terms such as "bright" "dark" "rich" "mellow" etc. On any given day, someone might use the same term to describe one brand that someone else had used to describe the other in an earlier post. This was frustrating to some folks, I think, and also it led to some posts where folks got defensive about their favorite brand. Eventually, it seems, M vs S questions were avoided completely in the interest of keeping the peace.
But it shouldn't be so. New ringers join our ranks all the time, and they should be able to ask questions about the brands. I personally wish I'd known more about the two brands before I made my first purchases years ago. So here goes...I'll share what I know and welcome others to add their knowledge as well. I have worked pretty extensively with both brands now, and there are things that I like and dislike about both brands.

But before I begin, it's important to mention two things: First, both Malmark and Schulmerich were designed by the same person, Jake Malta, and in fact they have a great deal in common. They are both quality instruments that are carefully crafted (in fact, if I am not mistaken, I believe that the castings for both companies are made by the same foundry). The basic design for both bells is similar, and both brands are tuned to the same overtones. Second, if you ever go out and try bells to learn more about one company or the other, BE SURE YOU ARE TRYING BELLS THAT ARE WELL MAINTAINED AND IN GOOD WORKING ORDER. When I initially compared the two brands, I tried several sets of Schulmerich bells all of which (coincedentally) had been recently serviced by Larry Loeffert, our area Schulmerich rep. Larry is VERY, very good at what he does and each of those sets was flawlessly adjusted. By contrast, the Malmark sets I tried were poorly maintained (or just plain not maintained). For years I thought that Malmark bells didn't hold a candle to Schulmerich bells, but that's just because I was comparing apples to oranges - a lousy set that hadn't been properly adjusted in years to a set that had been recently adjusted by a true expert.

Okay, so back to the M vs Schulmerich discussions. Here are the differences in a nutshell (and I will try and stay as objective as I can)

1) In Malmark bells, the clapper hits the casting slightly closer to the lip of the bell. This produces a slightly more pronounced fundamental tone, with a wee bit less overtones.

2) In any set of bells, Malmark matches the sound of the bells for more than just pitch. Someone with more of a physics background than I could describe this better, but in layman's terms: Any time a handbell is rung, the sound produced is not purely continuous. Rather, there is a "wa-wa-wa" sound that can be heard, and the length of time from one "wa" to the next varies from bell to bell. Malmark will match the bells in any given set so that this is similar. They keep records of all bell sets sold also, so Malmark owners can be assured that future bells purchased will match an existing set as closely as possible. Schulmerich does not do this.

3) In Malmark bells, the clapper pushes against the springs. In Schulmerich bells, the clapper pulls against the spring. I will venture into the area of opinion briefly here: Some will say that this desing makes the volume of the bells easier to control in Malmarks.

4) The Malmark handles are indeed wider. This does make "ring and push" four in hand perhaps a little bit more difficult with Malmarks than Schulmerichs, but that difficulty definitely is not an issue with "Campanile style" four-in-hand. It's as easy to ring a 4ih clutch "Campanile style" with Malmarks as with Schulmerichs. And while the narrower Schulmerich handles are a good thing for the "ring and push" four-in-hand ringer, they have a potential drawback too - they tend to roll over on their sides easier (which can be an issue with solo ringers).

5) The Malmark handles can be personalized. This may sound trivial, but if you are fundraising for bells, it is HUGE. People love the idea of being able to memorialize a loved one with an inscription on the bell handles.

6) Schulmerich bells are slightly lighter in weight than Malmark bronze bells. The difference is trivial with the smaller bells, but it is significant with the lower fifth octave bells and below. I can ring a Schulmerich G2 with relative ease, whereas I can't ring a Malmark bronze G2 without using both hands.

7) Schulmerich castings have an index pin. In my opinion, this is the only serious drawback to Schulmerich bells. With time, the index pin can wear a larger hole in the handle of the bell - making it quite difficult to reassemble the bell and have the yoke assembly in perfectly straight alignment with the handle. One must also take great care when reassembling a Schulmerich bell that the index pin is perfectly lined up with the hole in the yoke assembly to accomodate it. I cannot tell you how many times I have had to repair a bell with a bent index pin from someone not doing this! In fact, when I purchased my C3 Schulmerich brand new from the factory, it arrived with a bent index pin and the clapper assembly attached 90 degrees off from where it should have been. If even a factory employee had difficulty properly assembling a bell, then there is a problem with this design.

8) Schulmerich castings are rough on the inside, whereas Malmark castings are smooth inside and out. This doesn't affect the sound produced at all, but does mean that you cannot polish the inside of a Schulmerich casting with conventional polishing cream.

9) Schulmerich select-a-strike clappers give you the option of adjusting the clapper head so that any part of it can strike the casting. This makes "voicing" a Schulmerich possible. Suppose that you are at the point in your bell set were one bell has a clapper head of one particular size, and the next highest bell has a smaller sized clapper head. There will be a difference in the quality of sound produced by that higher bell with the smaller clapper head. In a Schulmerich set you can play games with the clapper head to minimize any differences: specifically, adjusting the clapper head of the one or the other of the bells so that it is just bit off to the side of either the soft, medium, or hard setting.

10) Finally the mallets...I personally believe that neither brand of mallets is superior to the other. They are simply different. I always have BOTH brands at hand. There are some circumstances where the sound produced by one brand or the other will suit the music better. Sometimes I even have some of my ringers use Malmark mallets and others use Schulmerich. It all depends upon what we are playing at the time, and our acoustical space. I experiment with every piece - and use what I like best.

11) The last difference that I will mention is purely subjective. I will welcome any differing opinions. I regularly ring on both Malmark and Schulmerich bells and if I want to achieve a REALLY loud volume, it seems that I can only do that on a Malmark bell .

That wraps up the differences that I can think of off the top of my head. Hope this has been helpful!

Elke White
Director, St. Noel Handbell Choir, Willoughby Hills, Ohio

[emw...@mirapoint.jcu.edu]

Hi Nick,

My computer just crashed right at the end of a very long post. I guess that was God's way of telling me that I should be briefer! Anway, here goes take 2:

When I joined the original Handbell-L in 2002, the Malmark versus Schulmerich debate was already a more or less taboo subject. A search of the archives provided the answer for why this was the case. In the early years, M vs S questions came up from time to time, and the discussions were often completely subjective and, well, not always terribly helpful. Folks would describe the different brands with terms such as "bright" "dark" "rich" "mellow" etc. On any given day, someone might use the same term to describe one brand that someone else had used to describe the other in an earlier post. This was frustrating to some folks, I think, and also it led to some posts where folks got defensive about their favorite brand. Eventually, it seems, M vs S questions were avoided completely in the interest of keeping the peace.
But it shouldn't be so. New ringers join our ranks all the time, and they should be able to ask questions about the brands. I personally wish I'd known more about the two brands before I made my first purchases years ago. So here goes...I'll share what I know and welcome others to add their knowledge as well. I have worked pretty extensively with both brands now, and there are things that I like and dislike about both brands.

But before I begin, it's important to mention two things: First, both Malmark and Schulmerich were designed by the same person, Jake Malta, and in fact they have a great deal in common. They are both quality instruments that are carefully crafted (in fact, if I am not mistaken, I believe that the castings for both companies are made by the same foundry). The basic design for both bells is similar, and both brands are tuned to the same overtones. Second, if you ever go out and try bells to learn more about one company or the other, BE SURE YOU ARE TRYING BELLS THAT ARE WELL MAINTAINED AND IN GOOD WORKING ORDER. When I initially compared the two brands, I tried several sets of Schulmerich bells all of which (coincedentally) had been recently serviced by Larry Loeffert, our area Schulmerich rep. Larry is VERY, very good at what he does and each of those sets was flawlessly adjusted. By contrast, the Malmark sets I tried were poorly maintained (or just plain not maintained)!

[Rima Greer]

HI Elke

FYI, Malmarks also have this feature...

Rima

Sent from my iPad

[Rima Greer]

Hi Stevie!

Yeah, I forgot to mention the black/white thing. Really really helpful, so you can see at a glance if you have already done the key change! :-)

Rima
Www.campanilemusic.com

Sent from my iPad

[Michele Sharik]

Not really. Malmark clapper heads have detentes to which you can set the clapperhead to hard, medium, or soft. Schullie Quick-Adjust clapperheads work the same way. Schullie also has Select-A-Strike clappers which allow you to use any portion of the clapperhead. No detentes.

Sent from my iPhone

[Thomas Simpson]

Hey!!

This was great except for one little thing. The Malmark bells reduce overtone by design. They strive for just the fundamental and a 12th overtone. Whereas Shullies have many overtones.



Thomas

Sent from my iPhone

[Rima Greer]

I stand corrected!

R

Sent from my iPad

[TimR]

On Apr 29, 11:11 pm, Michele Sharik <mich...@thegoldendance.com>
wrote:

> Not really. Malmark clapper heads have detentes to which you can set the clapperhead to hard, medium, or soft. Schullie Quick-Adjust clapperheads work the same way. Schullie also has Select-A-Strike clappers which allow you to use any portion of the clapperhead. No detentes.
>

The Schulmark Quick-Adjust can be used the same as Select-a-Strike.
Once disassembled for repair (you have to break the loctite, which
voids the warranty) you can reassemble with the screw tighter so the
detent is disabled and you can ring with any portion for voicing..
One repair tech recommended that I do that anyway, rather than allow
choir members to play with the clapper settings.

[mic...@thegoldendance.com]

On 30.04.2012 10:29, TimR wrote:
> The Schulmark Quick-Adjust can be used the same as Select-a-Strike.
> Once disassembled for repair (you have to break the loctite, which
> voids the warranty) you can reassemble with the screw tighter so the
> detent is disabled and you can ring with any portion for voicing..
> One repair tech recommended that I do that anyway, rather than allow
> choir members to play with the clapper settings.

Yep. I believe you can do the same thing with Malmarks (has anybody
tried this?), though the clapperhead design is different enough that I
don't think it makes sense to do that.

Personally, I like the quick adjust clappers for choral ringing. It
makes it easier to vary the sound as needed for different pieces without
having to pass a screwdriver around (ie. fuzzies on bass bells for stuff
like "Danse Arabe" from Nutcracker).

For solo ringing, I used to think I liked the select-a-strike better,
but I also like to be able to vary the sound as a soloist, so I'm happy
with the quick-adjust mechanism.

-Michèle

[mic...@thegoldendance.com]

>> Elke White is having some trouble posting to the list, so with her
>> permission I am forwarding her reply to the list.

Elke -- that was a wonderful summation! Thank you!!

-Michèle

[HandMeTheBell]

Elke said:

>
> 2) In any set of bells, Malmark matches the sound of the bells for more than just pitch.  Someone with more of a physics background than I could describe this better, but in layman's terms: Any time a handbell is rung, the sound produced is not purely continuous.  Rather, there is a "wa-wa-wa" sound that can be heard, and the length of time from one "wa" to the next varies from bell to bell.  Malmark will match the bells in any given set so that this is similar.  They keep records of all bell sets sold also, so Malmark owners can be assured that future bells purchased will match an existing set as closely as possible. Schulmerich does not do this.

I wanted to give just one more pro/con insight to this comment. It
has been a while since I have dissected Malmark bells also, so I could
be incorrect - feel free to let me know! But:

Because of the index pin on Schulmerich bells, the bell itself cannot
be voiced - all voicing must be done with the clapper. In other
words, because of its design, it must sit in one place in relation to
the handle and therefore the clapper. Generally, this means that the
clapper will always strike the casting at the strikepoint which is
predesignated. Therefore, the amount of "wa-wa-wa" Elke is referring
to (which I have always called a bell's vibrato - I'm sure there is a
better term) is predetermined for the most part for you through
design.

However, Malmark castings can sit anywhere in relation to the handle.
Therefore, you can adjust by small proportions, if you were to choose
to do so, how much "wa-wa-wa" a particular casting can have. Because
the casting can move 360 degrees around on the handle, you could
adjust bells that don't seem in line with the set, or voice them all
to have more or less vibrato per your personal preference. This of
course also means the casting is also not predestined to strike the
casting only on the strikepoint.

Pros to Schulmerich: The "vibrato" is predestined for you, so it would
be hard to mess it up with any adjustments you make. The possiblity
of the whole set being most simliar across the set (if purchased
together) is high since they were all voiced for a certain place on
each particular casting which the foundry felt was the best.

Pros to Malmark: Individual choice to find the sweet spot of a
casting that fits your preference or to adjust it accordingly over
time as the casting ages. Also, the ability to choose different
levels of "vibrato" in different ranges of bells if you so desired.

-Josh Fitzgerald

[Thomas Simpson]

Hmmm. I think I know this to be Different. The Shullies bells are voiced first and then the index pin is installed. The Malmarks are assembled, voiced and then set into place and scribed.

Malmarks can be revoiced, but Shullies would require removal of the pin to revoice.



Thomas

Sent from my iPhone

[mic...@thegoldendance.com]

On 30.04.2012 16:59, Thomas Simpson wrote:
> Hmmm. I think I know this to be Different. The Shullies bells are
> voiced first and then the index pin is installed. The Malmarks are
> assembled, voiced and then set into place and scribed.
>
> Malmarks can be revoiced, but Shullies would require removal of the
> pin to revoice.

Isn't that what Josh said?

-Michèle

[Thomas Simpson]

He said Shullie bells cannot be voiced. Yes they can!

:-)

Thomas

Sent from my iPhone

[Michele Sharik]

Not by regular people, only at the factory.

Sent from my iPhone

[Thomas Simpson]

Yeah. And that was the point I made.



Thomas.



Sent from my iPhone

[Ruben Mendoza]

Thomas, I thought you were going to pass this discussion?

Ruben :)

[Thomas Simpson]

I did.

Thomas.

Sent from my iPhone

[Nicholas Barnard]

Well regular people who own a drill and are willing to void a warranty can revoice Schulmerichs too.

Nick

Sent from my computer that moonlights as a phone. Please forgive any misspellings or terseness

On Apr 30, 2012, at 5:49 PM, Michele Sharik <mic...@thegoldendance.com> wrote:

[Jason Tiller]

Hi, Nick, :)

On Fri, 27 Apr 2012, Nicholas Barnard wrote:

> First, thank you for opening this email instead of just deleting it
> out of hand. ;-)

I've played and directed both types of bells.

I prefer to ring on Malmark bells, for the following reasons:

1. Malmark handles (of the newer generation) are more pliant and, in
the middle range, slightly narrower. Therefore, I find long ringing
sessions to be far less demanding and painful on Malmark bells.
However, I find that Malmark handles break more easily and snap more
frequently.

2. I prefer the white/black handle colors on Malmarks. Endless
existential hand-wringing about diatonic assignments aside, I find
that the color difference gives me a more intuitive sense of the
bell I'm about to pick up.

3. I find Malmark springs to be more flexible and consistent across an
entire arc than Schulmerich springs. The Malmark springs are,
however, much more fragile and require replacing far more frequently.

4. I find Malmark bells to have stronger projection and better
penetration. I imagine that because their overtone structure is
simpler that more energy is present in the lower and more audible
partials (and fundamental).

5. I find Malmark's adjustable clapper design to be more reliable.
While I enjoy the flexibility that Schulmerich's Select-a-Strike
mechanism provides, I've found that their quick-adjust clapper
weakens too quickly and becomes clicky.

6. I find Malmark bass bells to be far more powerful. However, with
that strength comes excess weight and very thick handles. I prefer
playing on Schulmerich bass bells because I *can* - they don't sound
as good, but thyey're a lot more practical.

All my opinions,

---Jason

[Jason Tiller]

Hi, Tim, :)

On Sun, 29 Apr 2012, TimR wrote:
> On Apr 29, 4:42�pm, Stephanie Wiltse <stephanie.wil...@gmail.com>
> wrote:

>> OK, sure, handbells are not a keyboard instrument. But the piano
>> keyboard is a strong foundation for many musicians. I just heard a
>> percussionist say that the piano keyboard is to musical learning as
>> the qwerty keyboard is to keyboard learning.

> Yes, but remember that the qwerty was designed to be inefficient,
> and the dvorak keyboard is far better. Only tradition and
> stubbornness keeps qwerty alive.

While I can't speak to the "Wicki-Hayden" keyboard layout, the above
is a very-well-debunked myth. Mr. Dvorak was an exceptionally
talented marketer and good at making up stories.

http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=356

The market penetration of our current "keyboard" layout makes
alternate layouts perpetual niche players - they can never gain enough
traction to be viable or worth teaching. Experts may gain from them,
but beginners should, IMHO, always be introduced to the standard first.

---Jason
Sonos

[Nicholas Barnard]

Dear Handbell-Lers,
I decided when I first sent this email that I was going to take the weekend out and not comment, unless riots broke out that need taming. Monday just flew by, but I found a few moments on Tuesday!

Thank you to everyone who took a few moments to comment on why they prefer one manufacturer's bells over another, I learned a great deal and have some things to explore once I get my hands on some bells.. (Which was tonight, but most of this email was composed before my laptop died before rehearsal.)

Warmly,
Nick Barnard
Seattle, WA
Bell Repair Guy at University Unitarian Church (which plays on 3 octaves of Malmark Handbells)
Resonance Ringers Handbell Quartet (which plays on 4 octaves of Schulmerich Handbells)
Intergenerational Choirchime Ensemble Director at University Unitarian Church (which plays on 3 octaves of Malmark Choirchimes)

P.S. Let us keep Elke's comment in mind: "New ringers join our ranks all the time, and they should be able to ask questions about the brands." Perhaps even a bell mechanics comparison class?

[Barbara Brocker]

Hi Ellen!  I’m catching up on BT-L and was thrilled to see that the Detroit Handbell Ensemble included a “new Kevin McChesney favorite that includes violin and bell tree!” in your recent concert.  Terrific!  I’m curious - what was the piece?  How did you set it up?  Did you use a second set for the bell tree?  I’m particularly interested in how choirs at your level are using bell trees.

 

So glad you did this.

 

Barb Brocker

[Ellen Woodard]

Hi Barb! We played Kevin McChesney's "Lore of the Loom", which our
artistic director (Michael Burkhardt) fell in love with when we heard
Embellish play it at our joint concert with them in Grand Rapids in
February. We did it with violin and 1 bell tree (the 2nd of the 2
bell tree parts), which I had the honor of playing. It was an
absolute blast!! We had a second set of bells for the bell tree,
which I set up as recommended in the music.

Ellen Woodard
Detroit Handbell Ensemble
(and bell soloist; venturing more into bell tree solos!!)

[Barbara Brocker]

Hi Ellen,

I’ve played Part 2 also and isn’t it a blast!  It goes so fast and I feel like I’m hanging on with my fingernails!  It flies like the wind.  So glad it’s available now.  Great idea to do it with Part 1 on violin.

Thanks!

Barb Brocker

 

 

Ellen Woodard <er...@med.umich.edu> May 15 07:11AM -0700  

[Stephanie Maloley]

Dear Nick,
I volounteer at Bishophills Elder Care in Rockford Mi  and play chior chimes with the seniors . We have Malmark Chior chimes and they' re in need of repair....So far the only place that I can find is Malmark Pennsylvania that alone would be $300.00 to ship thip one way...Not including the price of repair and parts.
So Sir my question is:
Do you do repairs? Such as the rubber bumpers are getting flat spots and need replacing.
If not could you please suggest a place close by?
Thank you so much for your prompt reply
Sincerely Stephanie Maloley
You can reach me at
stephani...@gmail.com


On Friday, April 27, 2012 at 11:12:46 PM UTC-4, Nicholas Barnard wrote:

Dear Handbell-Lers,

First, thank you for opening this email instead of just deleting it out of hand. ;-)

I've had the pleasure and responsibility of having to call both handbell manufacturers this week, and to ship one broken bell off for repair, so that we do have two separate and unique handbell manufacturers in the United States  is prominently on my mind.

I went and searched through this incarnation of HB-L and I really didn't find much discussion of the differences between the different manufacturers products, with the exception of Nancy Tipton commenting on the Malmark vs. Schulmerich issue as a tangent to a thread on the proper polish to use. You can see that message here: https://groups.google.com/d/msg/handbell-l/-RS0Tj0i6LY/HmU6q-Gmi_cJ

So here is how I came to the desire to write this email. I like Schulmerichs for multiple reasons that I'll get to later. This being said there I've been told directly by handbell musicians that I deeply respect, specifically Rima Greer and Michelé Sharik, that they prefer Malmarks. My initial non-verbalized though upon hearing this was "Huh? Why do they think that?" However, knowing that this is one of those irrationally polarizing issues within our community I didn't ask a the time.

So I have some suggestions for keeping this a civil and productive discussion:
* State your opinion as in the positive, not the negative. (e.g. Say: "I like the durability of Schulmerich's springs" instead of saying "I think Malmark's springs are chintzy.")
* State your background and experience with both manufacturer's bells.
* Recognize the goal isn't to convert people who like the opposite manufacturer's bells to your side, it is to learn why and what folks who prefer the other manufacturer's bells see, and why they see it.
* For simplicity and sanity, let us keep this to handbells only, not chimes or other products.


So I'll start.
I've played and performed on both manufacturer's bells. My initial handbell experience was with three and then four octaves of Schulmerich bells for six years in middle and high school. I didn't play bells for about seven years, then started playing on three octaves of Malmarks at my church. a few years later I started playing in the Resonance Ringers Handbell Quartet on three and then four octaves of Schulmerichs. In a normal week I'll spend 40 minutes leading rehearsal on Malmark chimes (okay yes, I mentioned chimes, sorry.), an hour rehearsing on Malmarks in a 11 person, 3 octave choir, and five hours rehearsing with the Resonance Ringers which is a 4 person 4 octave handbell ensemble. I'm the primary repair bell maintenance guy for my church's bells, and I share bell repair responsibilities for the Resonance Ringers.

My preferred Handbell manufacturer is a Schulmerich. I admit that this may be because I learned to love ringing on Schulmerichs and didn't know Malmark bells existed for over ten years after I first started ringing. I like Schulmerichs because:
* Their mellow sound.
* The index pin, it makes reassembling bells exceptionally easy.
* The handles. They're narrow enough so that I find 4IH and Shelly are easier. They also have a rougher surface that better accommodates quartet ringing (weaving, passing, etc.). They're all black. Bells are not a keyboard instrument.
* I like the durability and design of Schulmerich's springs.
* The textured interior of the bells, I mostly just like that look.
* The Master Touch hand guard disc. I like the look of it, as well as the fact it'll guide my hand more gracefully into the right spot if I misaim while attempting to pickup bells.
* Mallets - The clickless rubber guard of Schulmerich mallets are nice for the times I miss aim and get the side of the handle instead of the mallet head. (Mallets of coursecan be used with either manufacturers' bells, and yes, the best way to mallet is correctly so you don't have the problem that the clickless rubber guard addresses.)


Respectfully,

[Heitz Handbells]

Stephanie.  There is a Malmark representative in Michigan.  She might be able to help you.

Sue Berry in Dearborn Michigan.  She owns Handbell Services.

• (800) 37-BELLS
• in...@handbellservices.com

Carol

 

Carol Scheel, Norm Heitz
Heitz Handbells and Music
612-208-1741; 877-426-3235
www.heitzhandbells.com

---

From: Stephanie Maloley <stephani...@gmail.com>
To: handb...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, January 21, 2015 5:12 PM
Subject: [HB-L] Re: Malmark vs. Schulmerich

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[Stephanie Wiltse]

According to the Malmark site, Jan Van Valey is the Malmark rep for Michigan:

Janet Van Valey
29462 Heritage Lane
Paw Paw, MI 49079
269-655-8081
jvan...@yahoo.com

Stephanie Wiltse in Grand Rapids

[Nicholas Barnard]

Hello Stephanie,

Since this was directed at me, I’ll reply.

No I don’t do repairs of any handbells except my own and my church’s.

That being said replacing the rubber bumpers on Malmark handbells is quite easy. (Easier than it is for Schulmerich handbells.)

Cheers,

Nick Barnard

[ilikebells]

Yes, you can make Malmark clapper settings "permanent " by changing the position of the clapper indexing spring and back again to adjustable. I don't see much advantage to doing so but it's possible.

Karen Eastburn
Plano, TX