Choirchimes, developed in 1982 by Malmark, was the first American-made, hand-held chime instrument. They are very light-weight square aluminum tubes with fixed external clappers. The comfortable, rounded exterior corner produces the purest and cleanest sound. Shape does matter. In order to create the purest tone, the tube must have the 90 degree angles to avoid undesirable untuned overtones and extraneous “buzzing” vibrations.  Our Choirchimes® are designed to produce a pure fundamental pitch described by Dr. Thomas Rossing, past President of the Acoustical Society of America, as “the purest sound of any known musical instrument”.  We now offer 5 octaves of Choirchimes®,  plus the lower 6th octave (G2 - B2) as well as the lower 7th octave (C2 - F#2).

Choirchimes® are a wonderful tool to teach eye-hand coordination and gross fine motor skills. The true beauty of Choirchimes® is that the students learn through participation. The Choirchimes® are color coded the same as the piano keyboard, white chimes for the naturals and black for the sharps and flats. The note designation and position on the music staff is indicated on each chime.  Because students enjoy the process of creating music on Choirchimes®,  the attention span, memory skills and reading skills noticeably improve. Students  of any age and any ability  experience immediate satisfaction. Basic concepts, such as duration, become visual as well as aural with Choirchimes®.  It is easier to feel and see the pulse as they learn the proper ringing techniques for each note value.  Intervals and scales are more easily understood when they become visual through the use of Choirchimes®.

Choirchimes® are a less expensive alternative to handbells. In a school, church or home school situation, all students can be included.  The cost ratio is very low when compared to band and Orff instruments, and other traditional instruments. Children and senior adults with arthritic problems can handle them with ease because they are light-weight, and easy to play. Until you have experienced the sound or have inspected the craftsmanship, you only have our word for it .

Contact us to take a closer look and listen.