kerouac

What really makes a magnificent church? Probably everybody has a different answer: splendid architecture, history, stained glass, a great setting... There are a lot of possibilities, but there is one element that touches everyone, believers and non believers and people who have never set foot in the church or perhaps never even seen it. It sets the rhythm of the day and can sometimes announce both wars and celebrations -- the bells.

Well, Notre Dame is getting new bells for its 850th birthday, and it badly needs them. It is also getting a powerful new and more melodious organ, but the bells are more important.

Nine new bells will be cast and delivered soon, and they will change everything.

Parisians don't know and don't really care how many bells there are in a church. They hear them regularly, but they don't really give them a second thought.

The project endeavours to bring back the sound of the bells of 1686 which lasted until the revolution, when just about all of the bells of France were turned into cannons. One bell from that period still remains in Notre Dame, and its name is Emmanuel. It was installed in March 1686, so Emmanuel is 326 years old. The lifespan of a church bell is between 50 and 300 years, depending on its quality and the frequency of use. Emmanuel is a very fine bell and has one of the best sounds in Europe, so it will be the only bell kept. It weighs 13 tons and has the entire south tower to itself. It is only rung about six times a year.

The north tower contains 4 bells "of poor quality and of clashing tones" which were installed in 1856. A perfectly toned bell will tickle your intestines while a discordant one will just injure your ears.

The four bells were never in tune with Emmanuel, so they will all be removed. Eight bells will surround another great new bell named Marie. The sound of all of these bells will resurrect the sounds described in Victor Hugo's novel.

So, how do you make a new bell worthy of a cathedral? You make them exactly as they were made in the Middle Ages -- an alloy of 78% copper and 22% tin in a mould made of clay mixed with horse manure and goat hairs. Of course, once the bell has cooled down, it turns into a matter of math and physics and a lot of electronics before it is ready.

If you have read all of this, you should be allowed to listen to the simulation of the glory of the new bells:

http://www.notredamedeparis.fr/IMG/m...jet_Cloche.mp3

If everything stays on schedule, the new bells will be inaugurated on Palm Sunday 2013.

FrenchMystiqueTours

Awesome update and info kerouac. Many thanks for the history lesson.

Michel_Paris

I am much wiser now than I was 3 minutes ago
Cool that they give them names.
Merci.

cornelius01

The sound gave me shivers! Will be there a year too early to hear them in person.

RJD

Good information. Too bad that Victor Hugo is not around to hear them. When are they supposed to be installed? We'll be there in early September.

RJD

Woops. Missed the date. Too late for us.

gomiki

Thank you kerouac.

moderntrobador

Nice job. I love the sound of church bells and am very excited to hear the new ones in Notre Dame--it might be worth a special trip to Paris! We wrote a short piece about the new bells on our blog, The Modern Trobadors: http://tinyurl.com/76pu4rp. We were unable to get a project completion date-- good sleuthing!

kerouac

That was very well documented, moderntrobador.

nukesafe

Really cool, Kerouac! We stayed in an apartment on the Isle in May, "within the sound of the bells". That was one of the selling points for the place, to wake to the sounds of the bells of Notre Dame. I was rather disappointed when I actually heard them. Now I know why.

Any idea of when they may actually begin ringing? You say "soon", but that is such a flexible term when used by Governments.

kerouac

Last line of my original post: Palm Sunday 2013.

moderntrobador

Thanks for the kind feedback. Your post prompted me to poke around the Fodor's site, but I am not sure how the posts work...did you post this article as "Forum"? You have some really interesting pieces...btw, the link in La Mouzaïa isn't working...so I remain curious! Thanks.

ira

Thanks for the update, K.

>You make them exactly as they were made in the Middle Ages -- an alloy of 78% copper and 22% tin in a mould made of clay mixed with horse manure and goat hairs. <

And you'd better believe in the efficacy of prayer if you want a good bell on the first try.

FrenchMystiqueTours

Here are the links to both of kerouac's wonderful reports about La Mouzaïa:

http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...2&page=1#89471

http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...ad=3608&page=1

moderntrobador

Ah, thanks, FrenchMystiqueTours....I will look forward to checking them out!

Coquelicot

Lovely sound.