handbells

Hamilton composer Susan Nelson primarily writes pieces for handbells. (Courtesy of Susan Nelson)

HAMILTON — In the song of Susan Nelson's life, her career is hitting a crescendo.

The Hamilton native and composer will be the subject of a documentary airing in Estonia next month about how her music became so popular in the Eastern European country that it can be heard in concert halls and commercials alike.

“I feel like Cinderella,” said Nelson, who also works part time cataloging music for the Westminster Choir College library in Lawrence. “It’s pretty phenomenal, because when you do this for a living, you don’t really think of the grandeur. It’s just something I do; it’s just how I make part of my living. I didn’t expect this in my wildest imagination.”

Nelson didn’t know that her music had become such a hit in Estonia at all until four years ago, when she received a friendly Facebook message from Inna Lai, a respected Estonian conductor who has worked all across Europe. “Greetings from Estonia!” she wrote, explaining that she had performed several of Nelson’s works over the years. According to Nelson, Lai had even recorded a CD of her compositions, and one of her arrangements, “Brian Boru March,” had been used in a commercial for an Estonian megamall.

“I just thought ‘Estonia, cool.’” Nelson said, laughing. “I was shocked and happy. I do hear from people from email or Facebook or whatnot who have played my stuff, so I was a little used to that, but when she said they play it a lot, and that they had a CD, and when I found out about the TV commercial, it was like, ‘Wow.’ I was pretty much elated.”

But her sweetest European experience had yet to come. After Nelson and Lai developed a close friendship online, the conductor invited the composer to a concert of her own work, held last October at Old Town in Estonia, a city famous for its original medieval architecture.

In front of a sold-out crowd of 240, the musicians played 13 selections and nine original compositions. Spanning styles from minimalist to church songs to jazz, Nelson primarily writes pieces for handbells – differently tuned bells playing similarly to a piano in a work of music – but the concert also included a brass quartet and a chamber ensemble.

“Having a concert of all your music, especially in Europe, is the highlight of my career,” she said. “It’s the greatest honor a composer could receive. It’s really incredible.”

And it’s an honor she’ll soon get to relive, thanks to Estonian documentary producer Anneli Ahven, who made a short film about Nelson’s experience, from her first contact with Lai to her visit to Europe for the concert. The piece will premiere in Estonia on Dec. 8 – and thereafter be shown and sold in tandem with the concert Nelson attended – and although the composer won’t be able to fly to Europe for the occasion, she said she will experience the event via Skype.

Still, while she proclaimed the concert a highlight of her career, it’s helped Nelson in her educational pursuits, as well. Footage from the performance was allowed to be used as her graduation composition recital at the University of Valley Forge, where Nelson earned her master’s of music technology and composition earlier this year with a 4.0 grade average – an accomplishment she speaks of with the same amount of pride as her European concert.

“I was working full time and graduated summa cum laude – not bad for an old lady,” she laughed. “You’re never too old to keep learning.”

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