Dear Area 8 Members,

Because of health concerns due to COVID-19, the Area 8 Festival, “More Than Meets the Eye,” scheduled for June 18-20, 2020, has been cancelled as of Friday, April 24, 2020. Because of this unfortunate turn of events, we will not be together in June.  We look forward to future handbell events when we can again gather and make music. Please stay tuned for more information. Check the website, subscribe to Area 8 and state Facebook pages, and read the Quavers, our Area 8 newsletter for more information.

Beth Ann Edwards, Chair
Area 8 Handbell Musicians of America

YouthFest, an integral part of the 2020 Festival, is designed for youth grades 6 through 12. Youth will gather and work with nationally acclaimed youth handbell director Nick Hanson as they hone their handbell techniques, musicality, and more!

Participants will purchase their concert music before the event and learn the music before they arrive. Most of the repertoire is suitable for worship, so it can be performed throughout the year.

Participants can register as a choir, a partial choir, or as individual ringers. Depending on registration numbers and partial-choir participation, individuals and small groups may be combined to form full choirs. Youth ringers must be accompanied by a chaperon. Full choirs are asked to have at least one chaperon for every five ringers.

Registration fees are $125 per participant. Fees include rehearsal and instruction with Nick Hanson, classes, concerts, shopping time, YouthFest T-shirt, and three meals (Friday lunch and dinner and Saturday lunch).

Nick Hanson, YouthFest Conductor and Clinician, is in his eleventh year as the director of handbell ensembles at the Potomac School in McLean, Virginia, and his ninth year as the handbell director at Bush Hill Presbyterian Church in Alexandria, Virginia. At Potomac, Nick’s duties include teaching instrumental music curriculum to 5th through 12th grade students who participate in any of the school’s four handbell ensembles and he teaches private handbell lessons. His directing duties at Bush Hill currently involve a teen/adult ensemble.|

Nick is a published handbell composer, has served as faculty, clinician, and conductor at handbell events nationally (Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia), and internationally (Hong Kong and Taiwan), and is a ringing member and assistant to the director of the Virginia Bronze Handbell Ensemble.

In 2015, Nick was privileged to be chosen as the first-ever Associate Conductor for the Distinctly Bronze (an advanced performance event in Portland, OR, under the leadership of Dr. William A. Payn), and was the conductor for the Distinctly Teen event in Dallas, TX.

Nick holds a BA degree from Concordia University, Irvine, CA, as a major in music with concentration in handbells.