Hi, With winter in Britain providing a significant, record-breaking amount of wind and rain (especially rain), I have been mostly staying close to Braunston, and practicing change ringing of the bells in several local towers. To many, bell ringing is what you see in the movies: Quasimodo, or the kids in Sound of Music. Alternately even less exciting as someone hauls on a rope and somewhere a bell dings. Change ringing is very different than that, and I invite you to see this article in Scientific American that helps make the concept much clearer. There is video and sound!
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-mathematics-of-change-ringing-and-peal-bells/
The bells I ring are not nearly so ‘clinically’ hung- the ones in the village of Hellidon were cast from 1615-1635 (and one new little bell cast in 1993). They have been re-hung: the wooden frame (what the bells hang in) has been replaced by a cast iron one sometime in the 1800’s, and the ropes have been replaced many times.
The furry thing that the ringers grab is called the Sally (??why), so rope burn is avoided.
Hellidon has only 5 bells, where Braunston has 6, and Daventry has 10 like in the video. The more bells, the more complicated and precise the ringers have to be- as there are 10 bells ringing in the same time that 5 or 6 would be.
Ringers have the bells balanced in the ‘up’ position where relatively little effort is required to tip the bell over and make it ring. You can see the bells ‘up’ in the video. Notice how fast the bells swing- being very careful with the rope is an important issue- especially as some of the bells weigh in excess of a tonne! Hanging onto the rope as the bell swings over is decidedly unwise- and in worst case would slam you against the ceiling of the bell-ringing chamber, which is almost always separate from the bell chamber-( to keep the volume of the sound to reasonable levels).
the wheels of the bells in Braunston
Getting expert tutoring is essential, and I have been very fortunate to have one of the grandmasters in Peter Wenham help me ‘learn the ropes’. He has written several books on bell ringing and is an exceptionally patient individual. Peter is the ‘tower captain’ or boss in Braunston. The top of the bell you can see between the spokes of the wheel is the Braunston tenor bell, which weighs 15cwt – 1qr – 6lb (1714lb or 777kg) and sounds the note F. I ring this bell sometimes!
Please comment if you are interested in further information about bell ringing.
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