Added: Jan 31, 2012
Author: irkibby
Time: 5:11
less than two minutes walk from Old St Martins (Old St Martins bells can be heard in the distance at 1:11 ) is St Swithuns, which is now a redundant church which still retains a set of six bells. They are not easy to get good ringing on, partly because of some rather bad oddstruckness (including the tenor). However in capable hands they can be rung to a high standard. Individually a few of the bells leave something to be desired, but as a whole they are a superb old sound. They were obviously a minor ring of three cast some time around 1420, which were augmented by John Martin, another Worcester founder in 1654 by adding a tenor and two trebles to make a major six. These are thus bells that were all cast in Worcester, still ringing across Worcester after nearly 600 and more than 350 years respectively. 1. John Martin 16542. John Martin 16543 Worcester Foundry 1420 approx 4. Worcester foundry 1420 approx5. Worcester foundry 1420 approx6. John Martin 1654 (13-0-21 (670 kg) in F)They were rehung in a new frame and retuned in 1973 by Taylors. The clock chimes the quarters. The external shots are of ringing during the Open Day in Worcester on the 28th of January 2012. The interior shots are from a tour in Worcester in 2010.See http://freespace.virgin.net/worcester.cityparish/wbells/stswithun2.html for more information on these bells, and on other bells in Worcester
Category: Music
Tags: church bells tower kloppel episcopalian chime steeple society campane bellringing belltower london surprise minor louvre clock changeringing bellringer bellringers worship call peal bellrope belfry of england anglican campanology turret frame wheel rope cambridge glocken glocke cloche klokken kirklokken bellchamber louvres ringing
Rating: 5.0' max='5' min='1' numRaters='5' rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#overall ( ratings) View Count: 282 Comments: 12
irkibby says:
Feb 1, 2012 - I wish i'd have come up for a ring come to think of it!!
simonbellringer says:
Feb 1, 2012 - Nice 6, sound very good for their age, and good to see they still retain their character despite being retuned as recently as 1973.
glockengambe says:
Feb 1, 2012 - Oh,wonderful gothic and baroque bells! They sound as if they had a sixth-profile...
thatsitithink says:
Feb 2, 2012 - Why on earth do you think they are odd struck.? That's the first time I've heard them accused of that.
thatsitithink says:
Feb 2, 2012 - They were anti-clockwise before the 1973 rehang.
irkibby says:
Feb 2, 2012 - You can hear the tenor is quite badly so.
timmeh1507 says:
Feb 2, 2012 - I must have rung here before then then!!
thatsitithink says:
Feb 2, 2012 - Nonsence, it must be the ringer.
irkibby says:
Feb 2, 2012 - There's oddstruckness somewhere in most sets of bells
thatsitithink says:
Feb 2, 2012 - I've never heard any here.
timmeh1507 says:
Feb 1, 2012 - Lovely bells! For some reason I had it in my head they are anti-clockwise which caused some confusion when I got into the tower.