On 16 March 1945, during the Second #WorldWar, the city of #Würzburg suffered heavy #bombing that almost completely destroyed the old town. Every year, from 9:20 p.m. to 9:40 p.m., all #bells in the old town ring together to remember those tragic moments, symbolically rendering the idea of a bombing, but this time of #peace sounds. In front of and around the cathedral hundreds of people gathered in silence and with #candle in hand, in devout respect and to listen especially to the twenty bells of St Chiliano.
Würzburg Cathedral possesses an extremely valuable bell concert cast by Friedrich Wilhelm #Schilling in 1965, to refit the cathedral with a significant set of bells after the loss of the old ones during the war. The #FWS was joined by the cathedral's only surviving pre-bombardment bell, cast in 1257 by local bell foundryman Conradus Citewar, and a #Zimbelgeläute added by Perner in 2008, for a total of no less than twenty bells distributed over three different octaves, with the tonic (Salvator, G2) having a diameter of 2.31m and weighing 9080kg. For data, see: de.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C3%BC...
The great particularity of Schilling's set is the use of the gauge progression: except for the big bell, in heavy Central European gauge, the bells have a larger note-to-weight ratio as they rise in pitch. This would allow a great homogeneity of sound between the lowest and the highest bells. The impression one gets when listening to this wonderful concert is overwhelmingly positive, the Schilling bells are extremely pleasant and powerful. The largest bell, Salvator, has a weaker sound than the others, since the swing angle is rather low (the bell is very large in relation to the tower that houses it) and the clapper has recently been replaced with a lighter one to preserve the life of the bell. The result is a muffled effect, not at all unpleasant, but certainly Salvator is less present during the ringing, especially when the cymbals, whose sound is definitely shrill, are playing.