NB. For the rest of this article I’m going to talking in terms of open handstroke lead ringing, i.e. leaving a one-bell gap between last bell backstroke and first bell handstroke.

Once you progress past the basic handling of a bell and start ringing methods, it is assumed that you need no further tutoring on how to control the bell and get it striking at the right time. However, I’m sure more than a few ringers out there are tired of being told:

Pull your back stroke in!

What I have noticed is that invariably when someone is told to pull their backstroke in (ringing closer to the bell before them on backstroke) they then start clashing with the bell before them at handstroke.  This, I believe, is because most learners are never actually told that ringing a bell is an asymmetrical movement.  That is to say that the length of time that you hold up at backstroke is not the same as the length of time that you hold up at handstroke.

The reason for this is that there are an un-even number of stroke pull whole pull – each bell pulling handstroke and backstroke.  This is because of the one-bell gap that is left between the last bell backstroke and the first bell handstroke:

123456123456-123456123456-

The numbers above represent 6 bells ringing two whole pulls, handstroke and backstroke. The first bell has to hold up slightly at handstroke in order to leave the gap which means that all the other bells have to hold up slightly.  At backstroke there is no gap and therefore the first bell does not need to hold up, meaning the other bells don’t need to hold-up.

I believe it is this concept of handstroke and backstroke being different in timing, and learners not being taught this that causes most of the problems.  Learners are taught about the theory of open handstroke leading and that you need to leave the gap but they are not told what it means for the actual ringing motion.

Recently I’ve had reason to take an code library written in C++ and port it to C#.  Whilst I dabbled in C++ on a compilers course at university, I hated it then and I still hate it now.  I personally think it’s an abomination and should be consigned to the great garbage collector in the sky.   Whilst I can just about read the C++ syntax there is a lot that I don’t understand about it.

The library I was porting had semi reasonable documentation outlining what classes exist and their methods and a brief description of the overall usage.  This gave me a good starting point, however the documentation didn’t include example usages and expected results, for this I was forced to delve into the code.

One development paradigm I have been interested in but have been unable to find a decent project to test it on is Test-Driven-Development and this seemed like the perfect project to try it on.  So I set to work on the first iteration getting the test set up.   Without knowing exactly what results I should be expecting I was finding it hard going, so once again I dived back into the old code.

Thankfully, the developers of the C++ library had create a fairly comprehensive set of unit tests and with my limited C++ knowledge and a text editor with RegEx Find & Replace I was quickly able to convert their unit tests into NUnit based unit tests.

For example, what started out life as:

 1: void test_row_multiply_change(void)

 2: {

 3:  row r;

 4:  RINGING_TEST( ( r *= change( 6, "X" ) ) == "214365" );

 5:  RINGING_TEST( ( r *= change( 6, "1" ) ) == "241635" );

 6:  RINGING_TEST( ( r *= change( 8, "X" ) ) == "42615387" );

 7:  RINGING_TEST( ( r *= change( 5, "3" ) ) == "24651387" );

 8:  

 9:  RINGING_TEST( row( "214365" ) * change( 7, "5" ) == row( "1234675" ) );

 10: }

Quickly became:

 1: [Test]

 2: public void TestMultiplicationByChange()

 3: {

 4:  Row r = new Row();

 5:  Assert.AreEqual((Row)"214365", r *= new Change(6, "X") );

 6:  Assert.AreEqual((Row)"241635", r *= new Change(6, "1"));

 7:  Assert.AreEqual((Row)"42615387", r *= new Change(8, "X" ));

 8:  Assert.AreEqual((Row)"24651387", r *= new Change(5, "3"));

 9:  

 10:  Assert.AreEqual((Row)"1234675", new Row("214365") * new Change(7, "5"));

 11: }

Now, with a full set of unit tests at my disposal I was quickly able to bash away at the library and very quickly got working code without the need to trawl through ghastly C++ code.

Hooray for Test-Driven-Development and three cheers for Test-Driven-Porting.

ps. The library I’m porting is an open source library for Bell Ringing – yes I know I’m a geek but anyone that has followed everything else in this post must also be a geek .  Once I’m finished I will be releasing my code under an open source license as well, I just need to pick the right one.

pps. I may have exaggerated my hate of C++ a little.  I believe all languages have their place, even the esoteric languages like LOLCode.

As I am currently taking a journey through enlightenment and personal development I decided to see if I could take the Testivus advice and apply it to other activities and and aspects of my life. So, here I present to you Testivus – As Applied To Bell Ringing.

Technorati Tags: enlightenment, learning, Ringing, testivus

Whilst I have tried to stick to the original 12 aspects of Testivus I have not yet been able to present it in the original master/apprentice form. I’ll leave that for another day.

If you ring methods, ring touches.

Ringing a plain course of a method does not mean that you have learnt the method, it just means that you have remembered a series of movements of your bell. In order to ensure you have learnt the method you need to be able to ring it with the bells mixed up, as in a touch. Once you can ring touches progress further and ring a quarter peal.

Don’t get stuck on ringing dogma.

When learning to ring there are as many methods of learning as there are ringers. Don’t get stuck on the notion that you have to learn a particular way. You need to find a way that suits you. Learning to rings requires you to be mentally flexible, don’t let ringing dogma make you inflexible.

Embrace ringing karma.

Always remember you ring because you enjoy ringing. Be flexible in your learning and you will progress faster. When you see no way forward take a step back, ring something you can ring and enjoy it. A new path will present itself when you are ready.

Think of bell and ringer as one.

I often see learners fighting against the bells, trying to force the bell to do what they want. They view the bell as an external object that needs to be tamed and controlled. Soon they will learn that the bell should be view as an extension of their body. Once you control your body, allowing it to relax, the bell with move effortlessly with your body.

The music is more important than composition.

This may be a sensitive subject for some, however I am coming at this from the view of learners. When you are learning do not get stuck on trying to figure out how a method, touch or quarter are composed. Instead you should be learning to control the bell and make music that is pleasant to listen to. The time for analysis and composition will come later.

The best time to ring quarter peals is when the method is fresh.

Once you have learnt a to ring a touch of a method have a go at ringing a quarter. Do not start learning another method otherwise you will start to get confused when you come to ring a quarter. Ringing a quarter peal will cement the method into your mind, to highlight areas of the method that need more attention.

Methods not rung waste away.

How many times have you seen ringing master dive for their book of diagrams when a method is called for? Whilst you will never be able to remember all methods, it is good to continue to revisit the often forgotten ones so they do not become lost.

An imperfect quarter peal today is better than a perfect quarter peal someday.

I have to admit I am guilty of this. Far too often ringers will shy away from ringing a quarter peal of a method because they think they are not ready for it. On the contrary, if you have a solid band around you, you should view the quarter peal as an extended practice. Either you will get through the quarter, or you will find out which bits you need to practice.

An ugly touch is better than no touch.

Even if you cannot strike a method very well, once you have learnt it you should move onto a touch. If your ringing of the method is ugly, your ringing of the touch will also be ugly but it will give you another view of the method and will, in all likelihood, improve your ringing of the method.

Sometimes, the quarter peal justifies the learning.

Where ever you go you will find ringers that have a favourite method to hate. They have never rung a quarter peal of it, never intend to and may not even ring a touch of it. But that should not dissuade you. Just because you do not like the method or the touch does not mean you will not like the quarter peal. If nothing else, once you have rung your quarter peal you will have a sense of accomplishment and achievement, and you can put the method away safe in the knowledge that you’ve rung a quarter peal of it.

Only fools ring one bell.

I have met several ringers that ring just one or two bells in their tower. They seem to be terrified of ringing other bells. Do not get stuck in this trap. The fastest way to advance your ringing is to ring as many bells as possible. Each method as an easiest bell to learn on, and they’re not all the same. Also, learning the different starts of a method will help when you progress to ringing touches.

Good ringers loose touches.

Do not let a lost touch put you off ringing a method. Even the most accomplished of rings will loose touches for no apparent reason. Everyone does it and the best thing to do is identify where you made your mistake and try again. Also note that it might not be your fault that the touch was lost – but do not start pointing your finger, for that is the path to ringing dogma.

This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence.

If I remember correctly there was only a couple of minor hickups, one of which included me forgetting I was in the hunt and another where I forgot whether I was double dodging up or down when a bob was called.  At the beginning I was also unsure as to where I should be ringing when I was at the back a a bob or single was called but I soon got then ironed out.

I think the best piece of advice I could give to someone getting ready for their first Grandsire quarter is “watch the trebble”.  If its the last bell you ring over before leading, or the first bell you ring over when you get to the back you are in the hunt.

Further to composing methods and call-changes, I have also writen the software in such a way that it will be possible to create a catalogue of towers around the world and the sounds of the bells, so it will be possible to play back a method and it should sound as if it is being rung in a specific tower…. this, however is a long way off, and right now the software only has details of the St Peter Port church bells in Guernsey (my home tower).

The above screenshot is the initial debug output of the results of running through Plain Bob Major.

My last post was about my first quarter peal of Bob Doubles which was back in January. It seems that I have progessed quite a bit since then. I’m not sure about the dates (I need to check up in the tower records and make a note of it) but I’ve rung a quarter peal of Bob Doubles on the trebble (just plain hunting), I’ve also rung a quarter peal of Plain Bob Major on the trebble (also plain hunting) which was also only the third occasion that I’d tried ringing Plain Bob Major on the treble, which was kind of a shock for me but I managed to make it through somehow.

So yesterday was the first time that I rang a quarter peal of Plain Bob Doubles on the 2 (inside). I have previously been very nervous, and therefore made mistakes, when doing Bobs however yesterday it all seemed to come together. I did have a couple of slight hiccups along the way, and towards the end I was finding it difficult to consentrate on what work I had just done and what I should be doing next. Whilst we were ringing I felt that I could have rung it a little quicker but as it turns out we finished in 42 minutes which, apparently, is quite quick for a 21cwt tenor.

I’ve also had a go at Plain Bob Triples last Friday at St Peters. It wasn’t anywhere near as hard as I thought it was going to be and, appart from missing all the dodges, I managed to keep my place through two courses which most people seemed to be quite impressed with.

I’m also going to taken the opportunity to post a link to Fortran Friends. They have very kindly posted some ringing diagrams on their site which I have found to be very useful. Each ony only takes a side of A4 paper when printed, but contains all the information you need to ring the method such as the order of work, where you pass the treble, blue line diagrams for each start and what you do when a bob/single is called. Unfortunately they’ve only produced them for six methods, luckily they’re the methods I’ll be learning next:
http://fortran.orpheusweb.co.uk/Bells/Diagrams/IndPDF.htm.

One piece of advise I was given before starting was to NOT clock watch, which is pretty hard as the six is directly opposite the clock in the ringing chamber. So I spent the first ten minutes clock watching. I soon realised the errors of my ways and so decided to find other ways to focus my attention.

Method number one was to find ways to improve my striking. I concertrated on getting my standing position correct, finding the right place to hold the end of the rope and the best place to hold the sally, and I listened carefully to the other bells. Finally I decided that I had probably got as good as I was going to get. That took about fifteen minutes. Twenty five down, another twenty five to go!!!

Next up was looking for patterns. From leaning to ring Bob Doubles inside I know what the order of work is that each bell should be doing but could I spot patterns from the six that would make my life that little bit easier when ringing inside. Well, probably the easiest pattern to spot was that after the six does four blows behind a bell doing long fifths, it then does two blows over another bell and then two blows over trebble. This turned out to be quite handy as I kept missing the bell between long fifths and trebble. This brought me to within ten minutes of finishing.

The last ten minutes I spent working out what I would do differently the next time I rang a quarter-peal. Top of my list was wear a t-shirt with baggier sleeves. The t-shirt I chose to wear had fairly tight sleeves and, as I tend to sweat when ringing, I was starting to get chaffing under my arm-pits… not nice!!!

Next was my choice of foot-wear. Motor-cycle boots probably aren’t the best thing to wear if you’re going to be standing still for about an hour. Next time I find something with a little more padding on the soles.

Finally, I must remember not to do anything too strenuous before ringing. On Sunday I thought I would be a good idea to split a load of logs for kindling right before I went to ring my quarter-peal. Althought I was fine during the ringing, that evening and all the next day I could hardly move I was aching so much.

Everything was going quite smoothly until the time of the election of officers. To be honest, I had thought that all the positions would remain the same. However, due to unknown circumstances (I could speculate but I’m not going to) our Tower Captain decided that it was time to step away from ringing for a while. As a result we had to elect a new Tower captain. The first choice, and in my view logical choice, was the Paul who had previously been both Steeple keeper and Treasurer. Whilst he graciously accepted the position, he also stepped down from position as steeple keeper. He then proposed that, as I had been working with him in the tower on the previous Tuesday, maybe I would like to take up the position of steeple keeper.

This took me rather by supprise. I’ve only been up in the ringing chamber once so far. I have no idea what exactly steeple keeping entails (although I have got a pretty good idea). But I have got the support of everyone in the tower and probably the other steeple keepers around the island. With this in mind I accepted the position and, follow a vote by the tower members, was elected steeple keeper.

Now to try and figure out what exactly I’m supposed to be doing for the next 12+ months!!!

First up was a wedding at the Town Church. For this one I was only worried about crashing with other bells and making it sound bad but if I had none of the congregation would have known it was me as the ringers are hidden away in the ringing chamber up in the bell tower, well out of view of the church goers. Luckily everything seemed to go off without a hitch. We were ringing rounds into queens and back, and some simple call changes.

After the ringing I went for lunch with Ingrid (not my mum) at Christies. I felt very under-dressed as I was wearing scruff-stuff as I had been working on my Bandit before ringing. Apart from that fun was had by all I think… I’ll find out Thursday.

Saturday afternoon saw me ringing at the Vale church. This time I had to make a bit of an effort to smarten myself up as the ringers are in full view of the congregation. This time it was all call-changes from rounds to queens (I think) and back. Again, I think that my ringing was quite acceptable.

The good thing about ringing for weddings is that you get paid for it. So that’s netted me a couple of quid for an hour of ringing. I also found out, last night, that there is a wedding at the Vale church this Saturday so naturally I’ve offered my services…. £££!

Several weeks ago I was getting rather annoyed because I didn’t seem to be making any progress, I was ringing call changes quite well but that was it. Now I seem to have come off that plateau and my skills are improving again… I wonder how long it will be until I hit that groove again and my improvement starts leveling off?