Campanology is the scientific and musical study of bells. It encompasses the technology of bells – how they are founded, tuned and rung – as well as the history, methods, and traditions of bellringing as an art.
The Cathedral Church of Saint Philip is the Church of England cathedral and the seat of the Bishop of Birmingham. Built as a parish church in the Baroque style by Thomas Archer, it was consecrated in 1715. Located on Colmore Row in central Birmingham, St Philip's became the cathedral of the newly formed Diocese of Birmingham in 1905. The cathedral is a Grade I listed building.
A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an internal "clapper" or "uvula", an external hammer, or—in small bells—by a small loose sphere enclosed within the body of the bell.
John Taylor Bell Foundry (Loughborough) Limited, trading as John Taylor & Co and commonly known as Taylor's Bell Foundry, Taylor's of Loughborough, or simply Taylor's, is the world's largest working bell foundry. It is located in Loughborough, in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England. The business originated in the 14th century, and the Taylor family took over in 1784.
The National Carillon is a large carillon situated on Queen Elizabeth II Island in Lake Burley Griffin, central Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. The carillon is managed and maintained by the National Capital Authority on behalf of the Commonwealth of Australia. It has 57 bells, ranging nearly 5 octaves from the 6,108 kg (13,466 lb) bass bell in F# to the 8 kg (18 lb) treble bell in D.
The Newport, Kentucky, World Peace Bell is one of more than twenty Peace Bells around the world. It weighs 30,000 kg (66,000 lb) and is 3.7 m (12 feet) wide. From 2000 until 2006, it was the largest swinging bell in the world. It was dedicated on December 31, 1999, and was first swung as the year 2000 opened. In keeping with its theme of world peace, the bell features an inscription commemorating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and engravings marking important events from the past 1,000 years.
Bellfounding is the casting and tuning of large bronze bells in a foundry for use such as in churches, clock towers and public buildings, either to signify the time or an event, or as a musical carillon or chime. Large bells are made by casting bell metal in moulds designed for their intended musical pitches. Further fine tuning is then performed using a lathe to shave metal from the bell to produce a distinctive bell tone by sounding the correct musical harmonics.
A chime or set of chimes is a carillon-like instrument, i.e. a pitched percussion instrument consisting of 22 or fewer bells. Chimes are primarily played with a keyboard, but can also be played with an Ellacombe apparatus. Chimes are often automated, in the past with mechanical drums connected to clocks and in the present with electronic action. Bellfounders often did not attempt to tune chime bells to the same precision as carillon bells. Chimes are defined as specifically having fewer than 23 bells to distinguish them from the carillon. American chimes usually have one to one and a half diatonic octaves. According to a recent count, there are over 1,300 existing chimes throughout the world. Almost all are in the Netherlands and the United States, with most of the remainder in Western European countries.
The Meneely Bell Foundry was a bell foundry established in 1826 in West Troy, New York, by Andrew Meneely. Two of Andrew's sons continued to operate the foundry after his death, while a third son, Clinton H. Meneely, opened a second foundry across the river with George H. Kimberly in Troy, New York in 1870. Initially named the Meneely Bell Company of Troy, this second foundry was reorganized in 1880 as the Clinton H. Meneely Company, then again as the Meneely Bell Company. Together, the two foundries produced about 65,000 bells before they closed in 1952.
The McShane Bell Foundry, located in St. Louis, Missouri, is a maker of church bells founded in 1856. Over the past 150 years, the firm has produced over 300,000 bells. In 2019, the company moved its headquarters from Glen Burnie, near Baltimore, Maryland to St. Louis Missouri, as it centralized its manufacturing and shipping.
The Century Tower is a 157-foot-tall (48 m) bell tower containing a carillon in the center of the University of Florida campus in Gainesville, Florida, United States.
Altgeld Hall, located at 1409 West Green Street in Urbana, Illinois on the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) campus, was built in 1896–97 and was designed by Nathan Ricker and James M. White of the University's architecture department in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. Planning for the building began during the Illinois governorship of John Peter Altgeld. The building was originally the University Library, and received major additions in 1914, 1919, 1926, and 1956. From 1927 to 1955 it was used by the College of Law, and from 1955 on by the Department of Mathematics and the Mathematics Library. The University Chime in the bell tower – which marks the hours, half hours, and quarter hours and plays a ten-minute concert every school day from 12:50–1:00 p.m. – was installed in 1920. The building was officially named "Altgeld Hall" in 1941.
Richard Phelps (c.1670–1738) was born in Avebury, Wiltshire, England. Phelps was a bellfounder, or a maker of bells, primarily for churches. He was master of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry in London from 1701 to 1738, and is best known for his large bell, Great Tom, in the steeple of St Paul's Cathedral in London, England. The foundry, in operation since at least 1570, was listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain.
The Church of All Saints is the Church of England parish church for the large village of Wrington, Somerset, England. There has been a church here since the 13th century, though much of the present building dates from the 15th century. Historic England have designated it a Grade I listed building.
The Highland Arts Theatre is a historic building, first constructed as a Presbyterian Church, now operating an arts and culture centre in Sydney, Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada. It was initially constructed as St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church.
Casavant Frères Ltée. Opus 1841 is a pipe organ built by the famous Casavant Frères of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. The organ was first completed in 1911 as Casavant Brothers - Opus 452 for St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church at 40 Bentinck Street, Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada. St. Andrew's later became St. Andrew's United Church and is now the Highland Arts Theatre.
The All Saints Cathedral Bells are heritage-listed church bells at All Saints Anglican Cathedral, Church Street, Bathurst, Bathurst Region, New South Wales, Australia. They were built from 1853 to 1855 by John Warner and Sons, Crescent Foundry of London, England. They were added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 10 September 2004.
There are 10 church bells in the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, all of which are mounted in the two main bell towers. Notre-Dame used to have other smaller bells in the spire and within the roof, but these were destroyed in a fire in 2019.
The Senior Memorial Chime, known more commonly as the Altgeld Chimes, is a 15-bell chime in Altgeld Hall Tower on the central campus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, in Urbana, Illinois, United States.
This is the 8th Bell in the Chime, showing the inscription "MC SHANE BELL FOUNDRY CO., BALTIMORE, MD., 1911" on its waist. This bell weighs 575 lb (261 kg).
The 3rd Bell in the Chime, showing the inscription "OH, COME LET US WORSHIP AND BOW DOWN." from Psalm 95. This bell rings a G♯ and weighs 1,125 lb (510 kg).
The 6th Bell in the Chime, showing the inscription "STRENGTH AND BEAUTY ARE IN HIS SANCTUARY." from Psalm 96. This bell rings a C♯ and weighs 650 lb (290 kg).
These are the 7th and 3rd Bells in the Chime, showing the inscription "MC SHANE BELL FOUNDRY CO., BALTIMORE, MD., 1911" on their waist.
This is an image of the 6th and 9th Bells in the Highland Arts Theatre Chime.
This is an image of the 6th and 9th and 4th Bells in the Highland Arts Theatre Chime.
This is an image of the original essentially unmodified McShane "pump handle" chimestand with deep key-fall on all notes.
