Belmont University

"Singing Tower" at
Belmont University

Links to Carillon Inventories
GCNA	Tower Bells	Bok Tower Gardens

The alumnae of Ward-Belmont School for Girls raised money for a carillon that was installed in former water tower dating from 1853. The 23 bells were cast by Gillett and Johnston in Croydon, England and first played on Thanksgiving Day, November 29, 1928, by Henry S. Wesson, organist for the college and Director of the Department of Theoretical Music. Formal dedication took place on April 12, 1929 with concert by Percival Price.

The school was sold to the Tennessee Baptist Convention in 1951 and became the co-educational Belmont College. The following year the college agreed to trade the carillon to Schulmerich Electronics, Inc. for a new electronic instrument that would be "easier to play and would sound better." The bells were removed to the Schulmerich facility in Sellersville, Pennsylvania where they were offered for sale for $10,000, but there were no takers. The new electronic instrument was not warmly received in the community and was noted for its "hideous and tinny tones." It quickly fell into disuse. The college attempted to buy back their former bells, but Schulmerich's price was considered excessive.

The college then sought out donors and secured a new set of 23 bells cast by Petit and Fritsen and installed by I.T. Verdin. The new bells were dedicated on September 5, 1986. Nineteen bells were added in 2002 eleven of which came from a carillon owned by John P. Hall. Another bell was added in 2006 for a total of 43 bells.

References
1928 "Will Install Chimes at Ward-Belmont," Nashville Banner, November 17, 1928, Page 8.

1928 "Alumnae Carillon Is Placed in Use," Nashville Banner, November 30, 1928, Page 28.
Ward-Belmont Bells Are Played for First Time on Thanksgiving Day.

1952 "Electronic Bells Called Easier To Play," Nashville Banner, April 23, 1952, Page 11.
New electronic carillonic bells to be installed by Belmont College to replace the Ward-Belmont chimes will be easier to play and will sound better college officials declared today.

1952 "Belmont Chimes Fail to Soothe 'Indignant Citizen'," The Tennessean, August 27, 1952, Page i.
Replaced with a cheap mechanical contraction; hideous and tinny tones.

1986 "Striking a happy new note for Belmont," The Tennessean, September 14,1986, Page F1 | part 2 |
The carillon's 23 bells ring out once again.

1996 "The Carillons of Belmont," by Beverly Buchanan, Bulletin of the Guild of Carillonneurs of North America 45:18-44 (1996)

2013 "Beverly Buchanan Interview," by John Gouwens, Bulletin of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America 62:23-31 (2013)
Page 27: As for Belmont, Larry Weinstein [carillonneur of the Deeds Carillon in Carillon Historical Park, Dayton, Ohio] contacted me about a small carillon that had become available. He wanted the top octave to add to the Dayton carillon and thought we could have the rest to enlarge the Belmont instrument. The school of music dean was against acquiring them, but Mark Brown, historian for the mansion at Belmont, said that from his experience, if you didn’t take an opportunity like that you’d be sorry later. The dean became a good backer and helped raise funds to get the bells needed to fill in the gaps between the existing instrument and the bells they had acquired.
The added bells came from the John P. Hall Estate, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The Hall estate had four carillons, the smallest of which was divided among Berea College, Dayton, and Belmont University. The largest carillon, of forty-seven bells, became the nucleus of the Berea carillon, with a few new bells cast to finish it.

Belmont Carillon