Special to the Alpine Mountaineer
Members and guests of Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in Lake Arrowhead were given a musical treat on Sunday, Sept. 22, when 12 handbell choir members from Concordia University Irvine performed five pieces at all three of the church’s regular services.
Directed by Alex Guebert, director of concert bells and an award-winning composer of handbell compositions, members of the handbell choir were enjoying a retreat at Mt. Calvary over the weekend. Guebert was assisted by Eric Der, handbell program manager and director of Spirit Bells.
The group performed five pieces for those attending the services, featuring a range of sacred, classical, modern and popular music.
Concordia University Irvine has two touring ensembles – the Concert Handbells and the Spirit Bells – m. who regularly tour the country. The handbell choir’s most recent East Coast tour was earlier this year, with the theme “Let Freedom Ring.” They performed in front of hundreds of fans at stops in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. The handbell choir has also performed internationally. In 2025, they will be visiting South Korea and Japan.
The handbell choir’s most renowned performance is the annual Concordia Christmas concert held at Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa Mesa, where handbell ringers join with the school’s choirs and orchestra to combine in a concert of carols old and new.
“We get more than 3,000 people to attend at that concert,” Guebert told the Alpine Mountaineer. The handbell choirs also perform at the annual Concordia PBS Christmas Special.
Guebert said that many of the handbell students at Concordia are music majors and, when they graduate, they find careers in that field.
“Many of our ringers go on to become music teachers or music directors,” Guebert added.
More information about Concordia’s music department and programs can be found at www.cui.edu/arts/music/about.
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