Singing Bronze: A History of Carillon Music

Description

The fascinating history of bell music The carillon, the world’s largest musical instrument, originated in the 16th century when inhabitants of the Low Countries started to produce music on bells in church and city towers. Today, carillon music still fills the soundscape of cities in Belgium and the Netherlands. Since the First World War, carillon music has become popular in the United States, where it adds a spiritual dimension to public parks and university campuses. Singing Bronze opens up the fascinating world of the carillon to the reader. It tells the great stories of European and American carillon history: the quest for the perfect musical bell, the fate of carillons in times of revolt and war, the role of patrons such as John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Herbert Hoover in the development of American carillon culture, and the battle between singing bronze and carillon electronics. Richly illustrated with original photographs and etchings, Singing Bronzetells how people developed, played, and enjoyed bell music. With this book, a fascinating history that is yet little known is made available for a wide public. Introduction PART ONE - BELL CULTURES IN ANTIQUITY AND THE MIDDLE AGES CHAPTER 1 - The magic of old bells CHAPTER 2 - The time of God CHAPTER 3 - The time of man CHAPTER 4 - The bondage of time PART TWO - THE OLD CARILLON ART CHAPTER 5 - A new musical instrument CHAPTER 6 - Carillon music in a divided land CHAPTER 7 - Pure bells CHAPTER 8 - Carillon music at the court CHAPTER 9 - The Bach of the carillon CHAPTER 10 - Panorama of the old carillon art PART THREE - THE NEW CARILLON ART CHAPTER 11 - National Carillon CHAPTER 12 - The carillon as romantic symbol CHAPTER 13 - In search of the sound of the past CHAPTER 14 - A soul in peace, among the stars CHAPTER 15 - The broken bells of Flanders CHAPTER 16 - Memorial bells CHAPTER 17 - New carillon construction in the Old Country CHAPTER 18 - ‘The bells fight with us’ CHAPTER 19 - Dutch manufacture versus Carillon Americana CHAPTER 20 - Innovations in the Old and the New World CHAPTER 21 - Panorama of the new carillon art Sources and acknowledgements Notes Bibliography Origin of the illustrations Indices