On Thursday evenings and Sundays, if you hear the distant ringing of bells at St Oswald's Church, it is likely that Oswestry School Upper Sixth pupil, Oliver, and 'his band' are pulling the ropes...

It’s taken lots of commitment and practice during the six years since Dr Ellis introduced Oliver to Bell Ringing, in Year 7, because Oliver’s instrument is a 500kg bell.  Like conventional music, a performance consists of a sequence of notes (nearly 11,000 notes in the case of an 8-bell quarter peal) but the ringers don’t have any ‘music’ in front of them. Each ringer has to memorise a set of complex patterns and rules. A tough feat, both physically and mentally!

Last week, on Valentine’s Day, Oliver undertook his first Quarter Peal, a sequence which is performed on special occasions.    

We are delighted to hear about Oliver's commitment to Bell Ringing and the progress he is making with the team at St Oswald's.