Heavy Metal

This past Sunday, Hubby and I drove up to Valley Forge National Park to listen to a concert of sorts.  A friend from work had told me that his friend, Doug Gefvert was a Carillonneur and played at the Washington Chapel there on Sunday afternoons.  A Carillon is a set of bells. There were at least 50! It was a fascinating experience! We climbed this teeny tiny spiral staircase up the bell tower to

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the small room that houses the ‘piano looking’ instrument used to actually play the bells.  It consists of wooden levers, which are connected by cables directly to the bell clappers.  Similar to a piano, the harder the lever is depressed, the sharper the note will sound.  Some of the larger bells require more force to strike, and are linked to foot pedals. I took a short video of him playing Amazing Grace.  He is very talented! This is his profession, and he skillfully answered all of our questions.

  

The Washington Memorial Chapel that houses the bells is a tribute to George Washington, as seen in all the carvings of soldiers.  The grounds are beautiful as well and hopefully we can go back after the leaves start to change.  It will be magnificent. This  was a great learning experience, and we had so much fun! 

 

 

In October they are playing the original silent b/w version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame inside the chapel, and they have hired an organist to play along with the movie.. and there will be bells involved as well.  How incredibly cool is that going to be!