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Three Chances to Hear Change Ringing in D.C. at the New Year

Old Post Office Tower, home of the Bells of Congress, at dusk.

The Old Post Office Tower, home of the Bells of Congress, at dusk.

Washington Ringing Society is set to ring at Washington National Cathedral and the Old Post Office Tower.

Come and hear the rich, bellowing tolls of these impressive bells under the command of Washington’s finest ringers.”
— Paul Ashe, Director, National Bell Festival

WASHINGTON, D.C., USA, November 28, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- This New Year, the bells of Washington, D.C. will resound in thundering glory at the annual National Bell Festival. Augmenting the tintinnabulation will be the Washington Ringing Society, resident bell ringers at Washington National Cathedral and the Old Post Office Tower.

The Washington Ringing Society will be attempting two quarter peals and one full peal over the holiday in a traditional type of bell ringing called change ringing. Originating during the 16th century in England, change ringing involves a group of people rhythmically ringing a set of tuned bells in close coordination through a series of changing sequences that are determined by mathematical principles and executed according to learned patterns. Rather than a conventional melody, the result is a rich cascade of sound. Today, there are roughly 50 towers dotted across the U.S. with English change ringing bells.

The celebration begins on New Year’s Eve with a quarter peal at the Old Post Office Tower, just a stone’s throw from the White House. Ringing will start at 5:15pm. If the quarter peal attempt is successful, the ringing will last approximately 45 minutes. Looking for the best place to hear the sound? The bells may be heard anywhere along that corridor of Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest.

Then, the bell ringers will head to Washington National Cathedral to attempt a second quarter peal that evening, this one beginning at 10:00pm. The ringing can be heard from the surrounding avenues, gardens, and open spaces. The bells will be half-muffled to symbolize the passing of the old year. To half-muffle a bell, a leather muffle is placed on one side only of the clapper, resulting in a single, loud ‘open’ strike followed by a muffled strike, which has a very sonorous and mournful echo effect. At midnight, these muffles will be removed and the Cathedral will be the first to ring in the New Year with a half hour of jubilant ringing.

The following day, on January 1, the ringers will be back at Washington National Cathedral to attempt a full peal after the morning service. Ringing will start around 12:30pm and if the full peal attempt is successful, will last approximately 3.5 hours.

Change ringing times and locations:

Old Post Office and Clock Tower
New Year's Eve | Dec. 31, 2022 | 5:15-6:00pm (Eastern)
1100 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20004

Washington National Cathedral
New Year's Eve | Dec. 31, 2022 | 10:00-11:00pm (Eastern)
3101 Wisconsin Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20016

Washington National Cathedral
New Year's Day | Jan. 1, 2023 | 12:30-3:30pm (Eastern)
3101 Wisconsin Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20016

Note: All ringing events take place outdoors. There will be no indoor access for visitors wishing to hear the bells. Please bundle-up and dress appropriately for the weather, using caution when walking on stone paths, which may be uneven or slippery.

About the Washington Ringing Society:

In early 1983, the Cathedral Ringing Society, which had been founded in October 1963 after the installation of the Cathedral bells, was renamed and reorganized as The Washington Ringing Society in recognition of the new bells installed at the Old Post Office Tower.

The organization is based in Washington, D.C. and is dedicated to the study, practice, and promotion of English change ringing. Members range in age from 15 to 80 and come from many different walks of life, including teachers, computer programmers, lawyers, students, doctors, archivists, and musicians. All are bell enthusiasts! Want to learn more? Explore the history and mission of Washington Ringing Society. For more information, visit: WashingtonRingingSociety.org

About the Old Post Office Tower:

One of Washington's few significant Romanesque Revival buildings on a monumental scale, the 315-foot-high Old Post Office and Clock Tower houses a ring of 10 peal bells in the key of D major. The bells were cast by the Whitechapel Foundry in 1976 to commemorate the bicentenary of American Independence. They were gifted to Congress by the Ditchley Foundation, a privately-funded charity founded in 1958 by philanthropist Sir David Wills to support the Transatlantic Alliance between the United States and Europe.

The bells are replicas of those found in Westminster Abbey. Each bell bears the Great Seal of the United States, together with the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. “Wisdom, Courage, Love,” David Wills’ accolade for the American people, is engraved on the largest bell.

About the National Bell Festival:

The National Bell Festival is on a mission to celebrate and restore bells in America. Each year on New Year’s Day, the festival rings in the New Year with free community events across the U.S. and across the world. The organization also works throughout the year to restore historic bells and bell towers to their former thundering glory.

The National Bell Festival’s work supports the United Nations’ Global Goal No. 11 for Sustainable Development: Protecting the World’s Cultural and Natural Heritage, and is enabled, in part, by a Google for Nonprofits grant. Learn more about the National Bell Festival and the lineup of events and experiences on New Year’s Day by visiting: Bells.org

Paul Ashe
National Bell Festival
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