Dion De Marbelle

Dion De Marbelle, also called Daniel A. De Marbelle, was a nineteenth-century musician, entertainer, and songwriter. Institutional discographic records describe him as a soldier and early circus clown as well as a musician; during the Civil War he served as drum major with the 6th Michigan Volunteer Infantry. Secondary biographies connect him with acting companies, circus work, brass bands, and church singing, but their disagreement about his birthplace and early career calls for caution. No firm evidence establishes a specific denominational membership.

As composer, De Marbelle is securely connected with the melody first printed with “When They Ring the Golden Bells for You and Me” in 1887. The University of Wisconsin–Madison catalogue identifies him as composer of the five-page John Church Company sheet, while Hymnary indexes the tune by its opening phrase and dates it to the same year. Later hymnals sometimes name the tune GOLDEN BELLS or WHEN THEY RING THOSE GOLDEN BELLS. Its regular phrases, memorable refrain, and direct major-key idiom made it suitable for congregational singing and close-harmony performance. That musical portability helped the song move into early commercial recording: the Imperial Quartet recorded it in 1915, and Alfred G. Karnes recorded a solo version with guitar in 1927. De Marbelle’s text and tune therefore form one original gospel-song unit rather than a later pairing.