World’s “Singing Towers”

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 514, 17 November 1928, Page 24

World’s “Singing Towers”

HE dedication of tlie 4S- 1

bell carillon at Louvain —one bell for each of the United States—that was celebrated on the Fourth of July, will

focus even greater interest on tile “singing towers” of the world, yearly growing more numerous with a wide- | spread appreciation for the chromatic bells that make a city pause and listen. A gift from American engineering societies to commemorate their members who fell during the World War, the £20,000 carillon, including a clock beneath it, will peal out its melodies from the tower of the University of Louvain, which also has been replaced by American subscriptions. The carillon is not a chime, as is the general conception. It does not ring or peal. It is actually a musical instrument consisting of a series of chromatic, fixed bell, having from two to six octaves of notes. The pitch of each bell must be perfect; necessitating a craftsmanship among bell founders that has obliged America to depend on England for its carillons, none ever having been produce.d there. The carillonneur plays with his hands and on foot pedals, much in the manner of the organist. There are now about thirty carillons in America and there are soon to be dedications of others.

Carillons found in Canada are in the Parliament House, Ottawa, and at the University of Toronto. -It is in passing through the low countries of Europe that these towers? with what Hugo called their “starry music,” are most frequently encountered. Scattered over Holland and Belgium are the finest-toned bells. Carillons are as much the life of these people as their flags. Folk-songs that floated down from the towers for centuries are regarded as having cultivated their invincible devotion for the native land and a general appreciation of music. There is even to-day the popular belief that the appeals from the carillons were fundamentally responsible for the stopping of the last German advance. At Malines, in the cathedral of the late heroic Cardinal Mercier, the carillon’s melody is heard in its finest estate. The carillonneur is J. Denyn, recognised as the master of this instrument. Students of all nationalities come to this musician, who has arranged and composed many selections that descend from his tower to inspire his neighbours and townsmen. There are famous old carillons in France and others in fewer numbers over the British Isles. They are rapidly spreading over the United States. In Australia one has just been erected in the grounds of Sydney University. A carillon as a war memorial is contemplated at Wellington.