The Bristol band practicing for the 2016 National 12-Bell Final, which was held at Aston (Birmingham), and in which they finished 2nd (behind winners Birmingham). The test piece that year was Cambridge Maximus, with a 4ths-place bob Before and a tenths-place bob Home, splitting the back bells up and making for some different music. The recording (12th May 2016), taken on two Behringer XM8500 mics sited above the bells, is used with kind permission of Philip Pratt (St Mary Redcliffe Guild of Ringers). The photos are mine, taken over many visits (mostly from 2014-2016).
Redcliffe bells are (rightly!) amongst the finest and most famous in the world. With a 50cwt tenor, they are the heaviest ring of bells in a parish church, the fifth heaviest ring of 12 and sixth heaviest ring of bells overall. The interior acoustics have gradually been improved over recent years, making them a real treat.
The pre-existing heavy eight, with a tenor of ~39cwt, were augmented to ten in 1823 and 12 in 1872, both by Mears of Whitechapel. In 1903, John Taylor recast almost the entire ring - barring bells 8, 10 and 11, as the church ran out of money for a complete replacement! - to form the current, magnificent, heavy ring. To get the right note, the tenor had to be recast a good 10cwt heavier than the previous bell - it is consequently double the weight of the 11th (25-1-5!). It is also said that the 9th was not going to be recast - but was accidentally dropped, necessitating its replacement! In more recent times, the 8th was replaced with a new bell (Taylors 2012).
The church itself is also well worth a visit. Dating from the 12th-15th centuries, it was funded by wealthy merchants of the city. The site gets its name from the "red cliff" the church sat upon above the River Avon. The spire (rising to 292 feet or 89m), was severely damaged by lightening in 1446, and was not fully rebuilt until 1872 - the same year the bells went up to 12! Upon her visit in 1574, the church was famously described by Queen Elizabeth I as "the fairest, goodliest, and most famous parish church in England."
Tenor 50-2-21 in B.
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