WELCOME
The Australian and New Zealand Association of Bellringers was formed in 1962 to promote the art of change ringing in our two countries. There are currently around 500 members who ring at more than 65 bell towers throughout Australia and New Zealand.
Non-ringers might like this introduction to bellringing and to follow the instagram page 'AUS/NZ Bellringing'.
Ringers and potential ringers can contact our association office bearers or local towers and ringers.
NEWS and ANNOUNCEMENTS
Updated: 27 March, 2023
✞ Holy Week Ringing ✞
Many, church towers don’t practise or ring during Holy Week. Make sure to call ahead if you plan to visit an ANZAB church tower in Holy Week, 3-8 April 2023. Towers which have notified cancellations or variations are listed in the left hand column of this page.
Ringing for the Coronation of King Charles III 
Information about ringing planned in Australia and New Zealand is available here.
Women in Ringing
The photo (left) is from a recent practice session at St Andrew's Cathedral Sydney focusing on heavy bell technique for women. The NSW & ACT Branch has run a program of training sessions for women on foundation conducting skills and ringing heavy bells over the past two years, with a number of successful quarter peals helping to raise the percentage of women conductors in ANZAB's yearly statistics.
Women and men around the world rang for International Women's Day earlier this month. The article in The Ringing World (17 March) included a report and band photo of the Quarter Peal rung in Adelaide.
Further information about Women in Ringing is available here.
22 March 2022
Adelaide Surprise Major Weekend
The second ANZAB Surprise Major Weekend was held in Adelaide from 10th to 13th March 2023. Over 20 local and interstate ringers took part, with four experienced interstate ringers leading the seminars and ringing.
There were two parallel streams. The "Towards Surprise Major" had locals ringing Cambridge Minor and Little Bob Minor to Royal. The "Surprise Major" stream included touches of Cambridge, Yorkshire, London, Bristol and Adelaide, and courses of Cambridge Royal.
The photo to the left shows the good spirits of the ringers, with (from left) Esther Perrins (visitor), Phil Goodyer (key organiser) and Hannah Tayler (local) in the Adealide Ringing Centre.
Ringing for the weekend recorded on BellBoard, including the three successful QPs, may be found here.
Phil Goodyer
March 2023
12 Bell Weekend Young Ringer Scholarships
Congratulations to Charlotte and David Sorell who have been awarded the inaugral Young Ringer 12-Bell Weekend Scholarship. This provides each of them up to $500 to cover costs involved in attending the 12-Bell Weekend in Sydney in October 2023. The second scholarship was possible thanks to a generous, anonymous, donation.
Information about applying for the 2024 scholarship is available here.
Come and ring with Charlotte and David in Sydney in October. Let me know of your interest or watch this website for information closer to the time.
March 2023
Registration is open!
Registrations to date = 29. Why not be number 30?
Follow this link to the ANZAB 2023 web page and the Registration form.
Invitations to Bridgetown, Western Australia
9-11 April Come and enjoy all the good things Bridgetown has to offer. Ringing will be tailored to suit abilities/desires of attendees. We need a minimum of 6 visitors to make this viable so please let us know if you would like to come.
7-9 June We have sufficient interest to confirm the pre-ANZAB Festival ringing on the Alphabet Ring. More ringers are welcome. Further information is available via the Festival page including transport and accommodation information relevant to April as well as June.
Hear some half-muffled ringing on the Alphabet Ringing 2022.
Bathurst Festival of Bells
The second Bathurst Festival of the Bells is on Saturday 29th April 2023.
Please contact me for the program, which has been planned in conjunction with the Carillon players and other local ensembles. There are several sessions for tower bell ringing where we will do touches of a variety of methods as well as hunting and call changes.
Additionally, we will be firing the bells to imitate the canons at the end of the 1812 Overture and the local band will be part of a composition for Carillon and Tower Bells.
Please let me know if you are interested in visiting, and if so whether you would be interested in a dinner, some hand bells, and a peal on Sunday 30th April starting at about 10.30am.
Safeguarding Guidelines
Follow this link to ANZAB's Safeguarding Guidelines.
ANZAB CPR Training and First Aid Assistance
ANZAB offers funding to all towers for ringers to train in Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and First Aid, to a maximum of two ANZAB members per tower. Each tower is also being offered a free poster providing details of CPR.
Read more about the Assistance scheme, and how to apply, by following this link.
in brief
Updated: 20 March, 2023
Claremont, Christ Church
No service ringing 2 April.
Service ringing 9 April 8:30-9:00am.
Ballarat, Town Hall
No practice 9 April.
Goulburn, St Saviour's
Service ringing 9 April 8:30-9:00am.
NZ Two Island Cluster Practice, April.
Cancelled
Contact:
Holy Week ringing
Practices have been confirmed as cancelled at the following towers during Holy Week (3-8 April)
Armidale
Burwood
Claremont
Castlereagh
Darling Point
Goulburn
Lithgow
Manuka
Perth, St George's
Randwick
Singleton
Sydney, Christ Church St Laurence
Sydney, St Andrew's
See in brief for other cancellations.
anzab diary
Updated: 25 March, 2023
2023
7-10 April (Easter)
Wellington. ANZAB 12 Bell Weekend.
Venue: St Paul's Cathedral
More information
Contact:
9-11 April (Easter)
Bridgetown ringing.
Contact:
29 April
Bathurst Festival of the Bells.
Contact:
9-12 June
ANZAB 2023 Festival and AGM.
Perth.
Festival web page
Contact:
things to ring for
2023
6 May - Ring for the King
CCCBR guidance and resources
BellBoard event
20 October - 50th anniversary of Sydney Opera House
This is a very selective list in an ANZAB context. See also the CCCBR's list for events and anniversaries, and ringing.org's peal and quarter peal lengths for appropriate compositions.
about an event or anniversary to list here.
news archive
latest first
2023
Women in Ringing - 22 March
Surprise Major Weekend in Adelaide - 15 March
Surprise Major Weekend in Victoria - 2 February
Update of ANZAB statistics classifed by gender - 19 January
Ringing Towers
Latest issue:
vol.77, no. 1, Summer 2022
Deadline for next issue:
31 March 2023.
Daylight Saving Time
New Zealand and Australia
New Zealand: Daylight Saving Time will cease on 2 April 2023 (UTC +12 hours).
New South Wales, A.C.T., Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia: Daylight Saving Time will cease on 2 April 2023 (UTC +10 hours, South Australia UTC +9.5 hours).
Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory: No Daylight Saving Time.