[Bell Historians] Unusual clock chimes

[Chris Frye]

> Mark Regan wrote: Please can subscribers let me know of any clock chimes
that they think worth recording? 

Chris Pickford's link to the BHI is very useful. But I see that the
"Cambridge RC" chime is under the heading 5 bell chimes and the bell numbers
are not given. 

This chime is at the Catholic Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs
(OLEM), Cambridge, UK. There was an RW front page article on the restoration
of this heavy 1895 Taylor 8 a couple of years back and the unusual chime
tune was mentioned. According to William Wooding Starmer's "Quarter Chimes
and Chime Tunes" (my thanks to Chris McKay for this information) the tune
was arranged by Rev Canon Scott and is based on the plainsong antiphon
commonly known as the 'Easter Alleluia', sung in Catholic Churches on Easter
Saturday. In 1908 the tune was copied for the clock chime at Dunblane
Cathedral, where it is known as the "Alleluia Quarters". This was not the
first time that a chime tune from Cambridge had been copied to good effect!.


The tune is actually a 6 bell chime. In the same format as used on the BHI
website, Starmer gives the tune (in G) as follows:

1st quarter 1,3,4,5,3,4,3

2nd quarter 1,3,4,5,3,4,3, 4,5,4,3,2,1, 

3rd quarter 1,3,4,5,3,4,3, 4,5,4,3,2,1, 1,3,4,5,3,4,3, 

4th quarter 1,3,4,5,3,4,3, 4,5,4,3,2,1, 1,3,4,5,3,4,3,  6,4,5,3,4,3

Notes: 1=D 2=E 3=G 4=A 5=B 6=C

At Dunblane the tune is played in Bb, thus avoiding the need for an
additional clock-bell. As a chime tune it is universally admired. 

Chris Frye.

           
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