[Bell Historians] Fourteens

[Michael Wilby]

MPAW:One project I am more concerned about is the provision of two trebles
(to provide a light 10!) at Shoreditch

DRL:
I gather that this scheme has now been abandoned. Instead, plans are being
drawn up to spend large amounts of money to (1) improve the go of the bells,
(2) improve the internal acoustics, both of which are in bad need of
attention. This has been a long time coming, but I think the SRCY wanted to
do both jobs at once as part of one project, so a good deal of co-ordination
was necessary. It may seem long overdue, but it does sound as if things are
moving in the right direction. I consider Shoreditch to be a very pretty
ring of bells - just a shame that inside they are hard to recognise as such!


A very long time in coming. What are they doing - having a new frame? I don't recall the go being all that bad, and the acoustics could be sorted without too much trouble - not a situation much worse than St Seps - it is just that the job was never finished... I do believe that they COULD be one of the best 12s in London, but...


DJB: I have to say I agree with Dickon on the matter of fourteens. Fourteen
is a musically nasty number, being two octaves minus the top note

DRL:
I don't think that the musicality has much to do with it. It is the rhythm
that feels uncomfortable. After all, 16 is 2 octaves plus 1 note ... and I
enjoy 16 bell ringing.


Agreed - it's nothing really to do with musicality it's all about rhythm, which is why the Bullring augmentation was to 16 not 15. Fourteen is not an easy rhythm, though in my experience one gets used to it (eventually!); 16 is much better, being 4 sets of 4.

In the same vein, though I like 10-bell ringing very much, I do think the rhythm is inferior to either 8 or 12, though with a row shorter than on 14 this is less detectable.

Wow, hasn't this one strayed off-topic!



M.







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