Saturday, December 18, 2010

The Reason for the Season - Part III - Ding Dong! Merrily on High!

"Ding Dong! Merrily on High,
                     In heav'n the bells are ringing!"                   



The words to the traditional Christmas carol ring true tonight!
There's nothing quite as ap- 'peal' -ing to me, as the ringing of a bell! 
The sound brings instant joy to my heart!
Particularly during this season, bells seem to be ringing all around us!

(If you click on http://www.christmas-carols.net/ followed by "Ding Dong! Merrily on High", like I just did, you'll hear a joyful instrumental of the song playing repeatedly (with printed lyrics) to accompany this posting.  Go for it!  It's a match made in heaven!  That's what I like: a multi-sensory blog.)



                                      Bells on a front door welcome all who enter the home!






A familiar sight and sound this time of year is the ringing of the Salvation Army bell.  This representative had just set down her bell as I approached with my camera.






                                                               The bell of a church tower.

              



Let's not forget Santa's bells!  The sound most wished to hear on Christmas Eve.







I recently came across this mediaevil bell instrument called a carillon. It's impressive in weight and size, and you can imagine the sound!  Consisting of 48 tuned bronze bells, the peal resonates with great intensity.  The carillonneur uses his fists to bang out notes 'keyboard' style which are attached to each bell.  It's a quite fascinating instrument.  This same carillonneur can be found on youtube performing at several renaissance festivals.  He happened to be playing in a nearby town a few weeks ago!  In fact, if you're interested hearing and seeing this festive music being performed, he'll be returning to the area this Monday and Wednesday, each during a 5-hour span.  You can contact me personally to find out where this will happen.


















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