Chairman's Chatter - November 2019
Chairman’s Chatter is published in the quarterly ART WORKS magazine for ART Members and those on the ART Training Scheme.
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Learning the Ropes Festival of Ringing
When last I wrote, I was just about to set off for the Learning the Ropes Festival of Ringing hosted by the Norwich ringers. We were all a little bit nervous – would people enjoy it, had we pitched the workshops at the right level, and what would it say about ART teaching? A note to myself in future – have faith – because it was great! There were one or two things that we could improve on, but everyone learnt something and enjoyed being part of such an inspiring event. So what next? Well Norwich is already booked for a second festival next year and we are currently planning a multi-centre festival in May. There’s even talk of a ringing on higher numbers festival based on the work Nikki Thomas has been doing at Great Yarmouth and reported here in ART WORKS.
All credit is due to Nikki Thomas and
Ruth Suggett for taking the festival from a lunch conversation to reality. I do
believe that ART is really lucky to have so many volunteers who are inspired to
give something back to ringing through their teaching. As Simon Linford said in
this week’s Room at the Top article in the Ringing World “Giving
something back, if we are able to do it, is ringing’s form of social contract.”
This edition of ART WORKS contains many examples of people doing that in so
many ways and I believe that an important role of this magazine is to share
what others are doing; seeding ideas and encouraging positive change.
Inspiring ringing performances
The impact of ART teachers can often be
seen in BellBoard performances. Recently three came to my attention and I
thought they deserved mention on social media and now here. I don’t know how
often ringing 50 Rounds has topped the “What’s Hot on BellBoard” column of the
Ringing World but the six Aspinwall siblings, all taught at Crondall, Hampshire.
managed it! Only the week before, the same column in the RW celebrated the
following footnote to a quarter peal, “First quarter peal by a band comprising
solely of six graduates of the Birmingham School of Bell Ringing with thanks to
all the tutors and helpers at the school.” Finally (or so I thought) there was
ART Award winner Judy Farrimond ringing her first peal alongside her husband
Martin as part of the NDA peal week. No sooner had I sent up details of these
three performances to Simon Needham, our Editor, than I found out about a
fourth notable performance. After a number of attempts, Rebecca Legowski, a
blind ringer whose progress has been keenly followed and supported by the
members of the Learning the Ropes Facebook group, rang her first tower bell
quarter peal on the treble to Minor. Well done to Rebecca and her teachers and
helpers.
Now I’ve got to the announcements
bit. There are two big events in the ART calendar coming up.
ART Awards
Nominations for
the ART Awards are now open and this year to introduce them we have a set of
interviews with previous award winners. If you’ve never considered applying for
an ART award before, have a read and you’ll find out that past winners are
quite normal – they just have a proven track record of success in doing things
really well. You’ll also see that winning an award brings with it a lot more
than prize money.
ART Conference
The speakers for the 2020 ART Conference have been unveiled – a mix of inspiring speakers and those giving practical advice. In a break from tradition the key-note speaker is not a ringer but is the youngest person to climb Everest. Her talk, “Mountains of the mind” speaks about the lessons she learned on this extraordinary journey as a very ordinary person: the marginal gains, the leaps of faith, the not giving up when failure seemed inevitable. All lessons in leadership that we recognise in our own ringing world. Booking opens early January but put the date in your diary now – 14 and 15 March 2020 at Hilton Village, Derbyshire.
Lesley Belcher, ART Chair
Guildford Diocesan Guild
Crondall, Hampshire
All Saints
Monday, 21 October 2019
50 Rounds
1 Natanya Aspinwall
2 Rebekah Aspinwall
3 Aleeza Aspinwall
4 Leeona Aspinwall
5 Zofeyah Aspinwall
6 Ethan Aspinwall
The first performance by all six Aspinwall siblings.
Norwich Diocesan Association
Woodton, Norfolk
All Saints
Monday, 21 October 2019 in 2h 42
5040 Doubles (11m)
(1,2) Grandsire, (3,4,5,6) St. Nicholas Bob (7,8,9,10) Winchendon Place (11,12,13,14) St. Remigius Bob (15,16,17,18) Huntley Place (19,20,21,22) Reverse Canterbury Pleasure (23,24,25,26) St. Simon’s Bob (27,28,29,30) St. Martin’s Bob (31,32,33,34) St. Osmund Bob (35,36,37,38) Eynesbury Bob (39,40,41,42) Plain Bob
1 Katie L Wright
2 Judy A Farrimond
3 Ann-M Webb (C)
4 Martin D Farrimond
5 David F Webb
6 Stephen W Rabong
For Trafalgar Day during NDA Peal Week.
First peal 2 & 4.
First peal as conductor.
Brierley Hill, West Midlands
St Michael
Monday, 7 October 2019 in 42m
1260 Plain Bob Doubles
1 Jenny Sunter
2 Eileen Keeble
3 Stella Tew
4 Christine Barnell
5 Tim Sunter
6 Mike Keeble (C)
1st Quarter Peal by a band comprising solely of six graduates of the Birmingham School of Bell Ringing with thanks to all the tutors and helpers at the school.
1st quarter conducted no. 6
50th quarter peal no. 6