Bells of Old Trinity Church, New York how 'd they record it?

[Valecnik]

Christmas Carols recorded in about 1920. Played by the bells of Old Trinity Church in NYC. I wonder how they recorded them? The diamond disc no. 50248R sounds so clear it's like you are sitting in the belltower.[youtubehq]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoVlcTcHsNM[/youtubehq]

Below is an image of the church about 1850.

[Paal1994]

Bruce,

Nice recording. I've seen a couple for sale, but never bought them. I though they wasn't worth the money. But I think I'll invest in a couple of these in the future.

Regarding the recording of the bells, that's a pretty good question. They must have been recorded at a distance. I suspect that if they were recorded in the clock tower, there would have been a lot of distortion. There would have been too much noise out on the street. Maybe inside the Church it self or at a lower or higher point in the tower

Paal.

[Wolfe]

Though it's kind of hard to tell filtered through YouTube, I guess the recording equipment was in or near the bell tower. It sounds like a very loud cutting.

Wonderful record, I'd like to get my own copy someday (yet another one to put on the list.)

[estott]

By 1920 Wall Street was becoming what it is today: a chasm of tall buildings with Trinity Church at the end. It's possible that the recording was made from a nearby building, possibly on a level with the bells.

Here's an image of Trinity and the surrounding buildings in 1914:

[Edisonfan]

I have a similar disc, of Christmas Caorls, of Trinity Church, but mine is 50843-R.

Paul

[phonophan79]

I pretty sure I have more than one of these bell records... IMHO, they are not enjoyable to listen to. Perhaps interesting, a moment frozen in time... but so loud an echo-y that it has that out-of-tune sound that bells often have.

[Valecnik]

I have a similar disc, of Christmas Caorls, of Trinity Church, but mine is 50843-R.

Paul

Woops, that's the number of mine. I was tired last night...

I pretty sure I have more than one of these bell records... IMHO, they are not enjoyable to listen to. Perhaps interesting, a moment frozen in time... but so loud an echo-y that it has that out-of-tune sound that bells often have.

I'd have to agree with you Phonophan79. I would not call the music beautiful by any stretch. I was amazed though at how well it seemed to be reproduced on the record.

[Lenoirstreetguy]

About 15 years ago there was an article about this recording in one of the collector's journals, but I'll be damned if I can remember which one. I was sure it was in the Amberola Graphic but I pawed my way through about 50 of them last night and I can't find it so maybe it was in another journal. I'm still hunting........

Jim

[Henry]

The vibration of bells is complex and aperiodic, meaning that they don't produce a fundamental frequency with harmonics (overtones) in super-particular ratios (i.e., 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, etc., and also the resultant ratios such as 2:3, 3:4, 4:5, etc.) like simple vibrating strings or pipes. In the latter, the fundamental and harmonics 2 through 8 produce the intervals of the octave (1:2), perfect fifth (2:3), perfect fourth (3:4), major third (4:5), minor third (5:6), double octave (1:4), and quadruple octave (1:8), which constitute a major triad (with octave doublings), the most commonly encountered chord in tonal harmony. It is stable and complete in itself, and does not impose a need for resolution to a more stable sonority. Bells, OTOH, do not behave in this neat and regular way, producing all kinds of in-between frequencies which we perceive as dissonances, and this effect is more pronounced the closer we are to the source. Thus bells sound more pleasing when heard at a distance, where the aperiodic ("dissonant") frequencies are somewhat attentuated, leaving the impression mostly of a strong fundamental. All of this suggests that recordings of bells made at a distance will sound more satisfying than one made close up.

P.S. Apologies for the lecture. I'm a recovering academic, and still have a ways to go.

[estott]

I recall seeing a documentary about a man who redesigned bells to change the harmonics and remove the dissonant qualities. The results sounded clean and sweet but were pretty different from traditional European forms and looked more like swollen cannon barrels.