Standing on the Promises

"Standing on the Promises" is a fun hymn from the mid-1800s. It was written by R. Kelso Carter, a Methodist minister and teacher at the Pennsylvania Military Academy. The tune has a martial feel and has been a standard in many church hymnals since it was written. This arrangement by Mark R Lewis is for 3-5 octave handbell choir. There are very few bell changes but the tempo is quite upbeat leading to some difficulties, especially in the fanfare-like introduction. The arrangement is also in 12/8 which may appear difficult but allows a triplet feel more similar to how most people would actually sing the the dotted-eighth/sixteenth rhythms in the original tune. Most intermediate groups should be able to perform this arrangement with practice. The AGEHR ranking would be level 3.