In 1974, Carling-O'Keefe Breweries provided funding for the construction of the 50-bell carillon.[1] The bells were cast by the Royal Eijsbouts foundry of Asten in the Netherlands.[2] The largest bell (the bourdon) weighs 4800 pounds.[3] The instrument transposes up a perfect fourth from concert pitch.[4] Four of the large bells including the bourdon are equipped with outside hammers to sound the Cambridge Quarters while the bourdon strikes the hour.[citation needed] Part way up the tower is a compartment with figures of the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Swineherd"; upon activation, these figures could be moved from one side of the tower to the other, but the mechanism is no longer functional.[5] When the carillon was built, it was played most days of the week during the Exhibition summer season.[citation needed] The current carillonist is Gerald Martindale.[citation needed]
The Exhibition Place Carillon console (manual and pedals) in the playing chamber in 2015
The original plaque reads:
"Carlsberg Carillon presented to the Canadian National Exhibition by Carling O'Keefe Breweries August 1974 Made by Royal Eijsbouts - Holland"
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
