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How to Strap Marching Bells to You

The bells belong to the percussion family of instruments. Although somewhat uncommon, marching bands might include a set of orchestra bells -- also called a glockenspiel. When you must march carrying this percussion instrument, strap marching bells to you with a special harness that holds the bells and attaches to your shoulders. Because the harness distributes and supports the weight of the bells, this leaves you free to play them with mallets as you march.

Things You'll Need

  • Marching bell harness
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Instructions

    • 1

      Adjust the harness so it fits your body. The harness includes two curved pieces that sit over your shoulders. Extending down from the shoulder pieces, the front of the harness has a frame that can adjust for height to place the bottom piece so it sits roughly even with your pelvis. Unscrew the screws at the front of the harness to make the bottom piece sit at pelvis level and then screw them back in again tightly.

    • 2

      Place the harness on your body with the shoulder pieces over your shoulders securely. Make sure the shoulder pieces sit on the muscle area of your shoulders and not your collarbones, or you will quickly feel uncomfortable carrying the bells.

    • 3

      Place the glockenspiel onto the two metal pieces that extend out horizontally from the bottom front of the harness. These metal pieces have notches designed to fit around the glockenspiel and hold it securely. The outside ends of the horizontal pieces extend up to keep the bells from moving after you place them onto the harness.

    • 4

      Carry the bells in the harness, march and play simultaneously using the marching bell harness. Take care not to move your body in a way that might cause the bells to tip while holding them with the harness.

Marching Bands

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