2026 Florida Handbell Festival

On-Site Check-in & Set-up

Set-up and check-in is between 11:30am and 1:00pm on Friday. If you have your own tables, you are encouraged to bring them. Table rental fees are on the registration form. You should also bring foam, covers and any equipment needed for ringing. Food and drinks are not allowed on the tables. Drinks should be capped, spill proof, and kept beneath the tables.

Orphans & Orphan Hosts

We will try to place orphans in your desired ringing position or as close as possible in a ‘host’ choir. Please mark orphan on the registration form. Please do not opt out of bringing your own equipment for convenience as orphan placement is limited. Choirs who are bringing equipment and have some positions open for orphans, please indicate those positions on the registration page.

Youth

Youth choirs are welcome to participate in the festival at the proper level of their ability. Underage participants (17 and younger) must be chaperoned (one adult, 21 years and older, per 6 ringers under the age of 17). Non-ringing chaperones may register as a guest for $35. Ringing chaperones must register as a ringer. A notarized medical release form is required for underage participants (see page 10).

Bronze Choir

This group is for individuals or groups who would like to ring additional advanced music. Participating requires you to purchase additional music and prepare it before arriving at the festival. There will be additional rehearsals and you must attend all rehearsals to participate in the Bronze Choir. Fill out the Bronze Choir registration form and complete your registration by February 1, 2026. This choir will require a minimum number of ringers. We will try to have all assignments out within the following week which will give the ringer a month to rehearse the music and their assigned part.

Refunds

There is a non-refundable $25 administration fee charged on all refunds requested before March 1, 2026. No refunds will be given after March 1, 2026, but you may transfer the registration to another ringer.

Classes

A description of classes with instructors will be available on our website in February, 2026. If there is a class you would like to see, or if you would like to be considered as an instructor, please email the Florida Chair at [email protected]. We greatly appreciate your feedback!

Dress

Dress casual, wear comfortable shoes and layer for AC. Please no cologne/perfumes as your neighbor may have allergies. No special dress is required for the concert but matching shirts or outfits are encouraged.

Meals

We are pleased to offer the following meal options during the festival:

– Friday: Optional lunch available for pre-order ($12 per person, such as pizza or a similar option) and dinner (included with registration).

– Saturday: Lunch included with registration.

– Snacks and beverages will be available throughout the festival.

Note: If you require vegetarian meals, please order them for the entire event in advance.

Lighting

The lighting in the ringing room may not be the same in all areas. Please feel free to bring a music light if you prefer.

Tentative Event Schedule: 

Travel / Accommodations:

Kathryn Jurado, Clinician

A musician with over 30 years of performance experience, 20 years of non-profit volunteer work, and lifelong church music ministry service, Kathryn Jurado has quickly gained prominence in the handbell community as a ringer and director. She is starting her first year as the Director of Handbell Activities at Landon School in Bethesda, Maryland, where she will lead students from grades 5 through 12. Kathryn also serves as President-Elect on the national board of Handbell Musicians of America, and is the Handbell and Instrumental Editor of Alfred Handbell, a division of Jubilate Music Group.

Originally born in Puerto Rico, Kathryn holds both a Bachelor and Master of Music degree from the University of South Florida in Tampa. As a freelance oboist and private teacher, she has performed with groups such as Opera Tampa, the Venice Symphony, The Tampa Bay Symphony, The Villages Philharmonic, and performances of La La Land Live, and with Ray Charles, the Irish Tenors, and pop superstars Hanson.

Previously, Kathryn served as one of the music directors and Vice President of Magic of Bronze, a community handbell ensemble based in the Orlando area, which was one of the featured performance choirs at the 2020 HMA National Seminar, as well as a term as Associate Director of the Suncoast Bronze Ringers community handbell ensemble in the Tampa Bay area. Kathryn also led a handbell ensemble at the University of South Florida, taught music in the Hillsborough County Public Schools for over a decade, served as Province Officer with Sigma Alpha Iota, International Music Fraternity, and was the handbell director at Lake Magdalene Church (formerly UMC) in Tampa.

In 2022, Kathryn had the privilege to be the clinician for Reaching for Bronze (now known as Crescendo) in New Bern, North Carolina. Most recently, she was the handbell clinician for the Florida Chapter of the Fellowship of Worship Artists’ Worship Arts Week in Fruitland Park, Florida in 2024 and 2025, HMA Area 4’s Bells of the Caribbean in 2024, HMA’s 2025 College Ring-In, and the 2025 Utah Spring Ring. Kathryn was a faculty member at HMA’s 2025 Pinnacle event in Wichita, Kansas, and is looking forward to leading handbell festivals in Delaware, Montana, and Nebraska in 2026.

In her spare time, Kathryn, along with her husband, William J. Murphy, enjoys traveling to Disney, cruising the Caribbean, and watching movies with their clowder of cats.

Michael Lamb, Clinician

Michael Lamb has been a handbell director and ringer since 1983. He directed the handbell program at First Congregational Church in Springfield, Illinois for 30 years and was the Music Director there for 15 years. In 1997 he founded the Bells in Motion handbell ensemble which is an advanced community handbell group with ringers from throughout the Midwest. Michael studied conducting and music at the University of Illinois and at Illinois State University. In 2003 he completed a Master Conducting class under the instruction of Dr. William Payn. In September of 2019, he became the music director of Suncoast Bronze Ringers, an advanced community ensemble in Tampa, FL. He also directs the intermediate-level community group, Bay Area Ringers.

Michael is an experienced ringer, having played with Distinctly Bronze 8 times and Virtuoso 5 times as well as being selected for several Dream Team groups at prior Pinnacle HMA events. In addition, he is an accomplished handbell soloist having performed at churches, festivals, concerts, and many corporate functions throughout the midwest and Florida. In 2010 Michael was selected to join two other soloists to present a solo concert in Nashville at Pinnacle.

Michael has been in demand as a clinician and director. He has taught numerous handbell technique classes both in Area 8 and in Area 4 as well as working with various church choirs and regularly with the Bay Area Ringers to help handbell musicians improve their ringing abilities.

Michael is currently serving as Treasurer for the Area 4 Board of the Handbell Musicians of America.