The
bell-tower is the place where art is made
up, thanks to melodies and consequently
thanks to the art of the bell-ringer.
The ascent to the belfry is a sort of prelude
to the art which will assume shape there;
this context is therefore particularly important
for the creation of the melodies and for
any musical arrangement.
Doors, stairs, the clock, ropes going down
to the ground and accompanying the ascent
merge into melodies, whose are the only
one prelude and the last source of inspiration;
when the door to the tower is passed through
you can enter a new world, made up not only
of matter but also of unique odours and
colours.
Each human alteration of this setting may
cause a consequent variation of the musical
aspect. In a more or less marked way changes
have an influence on the art that will be
produced on that bell-tower, even if every
bell-tower linked to a church must necessarily
produce sounds announcing various religious
events. For instance widespread automation
seldom respects the tradition of playing
the Angelus at sunset.
The examples of these modifications are
clearly visible and audible: virtual bells
(recorded somewhere else and diffused by
loud-speakers), electrical automation (a
system which uses external strikers hitting
the bell from outside instead of clappers
hitting the bell from inside, together with
the motorization of wheels to make the bells
swing), the destruction of the stairs and
so on. |
