Church bells are fading notes in the soundscape
Published Saturday January 3rd, 2009
FREDERICTON - The celestial voices of Christ Church Cathedral in Fredericton are much quieter these days, thanks to changing times and modern sensibilities.
The chime of bells at the Anglican cathedral is the largest in the province, but, like bells in many old churches, they don't toll as often as they used to and most new churches don't even bother with the costly arrays.
"I think probably churches these days figure a good sound system is more important than hanging bells," says Hank Williams, the verger at the cathedral and an occasional bell ringer.
"So many new churches are built in a modern style and newer places probably don't see the need. It's nice to think they're going to use their money for social programs rather than put a set of bells in. That to me is more important, but at the same time, if you have this link that you can keep with the past, that's good too and I thank the dear Lord we have the ones we have."
It's difficult to know if people realize that the sound of church bells is gradually slipping from their lives.
Christ Church, located in downtown Fredericton, used to ring its bells often, especially in the summer, until at least one neighbour complained about the daily clanging.
"Unfortunately we just don't play them that much now," Williams says.
"We'll play them before services. They're certainly played before the midnight service on Christmas Eve and other special services. That's about it."
The Christ Church system of 15 bells is the largest of five chimes in New Brunswick. A chime has fewer than 23 bells while an array of 23 bells or more is called a carillon.
Just 11 carillons exist in Canada, none east of Montreal. There are more than 100 chimes across the country.
No new carillons or chimes have been built in this country for many years, and two of Canada's existing carillons are out of commission.
One stopped working because of poor maintenance, and another, located in Niagara Falls, Ont., was shut down after 9-11 because of security concerns.
With care, bell systems can last a very long time. In Europe, some carillons and chimes that were built in the 1600s are still played today.
The 15 bells in the spire of Christ Church Cathedral were installed in 1912 after a fire burned the old tower and destroyed the original bells, which dated from the 1850s.
Williams says the new bells were purchased for the cathedral by philanthorpist, Sir James Dunn.
Climbing to the bell tower is like a scene out of a Harry Potter book.
Narrow, winding stairs hidden behind a tiny door in the cathedral take a visitor halfway to the bells in the spire. Ladders have to be climbed after that to finish the trek to the bells, which range in size.
The clapper in the largest is the size of a softball. Few people ever go up, including Williams, who is nervous about heights.
But he is a great admirer of the bells.
"The sound of those bells belongs to everyone in this city," he says.
Among the many stories surrounding the bells of the cathedral is one relating to their chief installer, who travelled to Fredericton from England in 1912.
Williams says the man was pleased when he managed to get a ticket for the journey on a wonderful new ship sailing to America - the Titanic.
He says the man missed that boat, came over on another and lived to see the bells toll a new day.
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