Book Review
Ensembles campanaires en Rhône-Alpes, Pierre Marie Guéritey. Seyssel: Editions Comp'Act, 1994. 229 pp., photos, paperbound, 180 FF (available from Editions Comp'Act, 9 & 11, Place dela République, 01420 Seyssel, France.) ISBN 2-87661-104-X.
Published with the support of the Ministry of Culture and the regional government, Ensembles campanaires en Rhône-Alpes is a survey of tower bells in the Rhône-Alpes region of France. There, bells traditionally have been swung--alone or in combination--or tolled, often in conjunction with religious activities. The installation of keyboards in order to control the bells for musical purposes, in the Flemish tradition, came as a secondary usage. Municipal rivalry for the largest bell and the preference for fewer large bells that are audible for longer distances rather than numerous small bells kept the Flemish tradition at bay for some time. But regardless of their function, bells have a pronounced significance in this region. As the commissioner of the Rhône-Alpes region, Paul Bernard, remarks in a preface to the book: "Whatever its nature, the sound of bells never makes an indifferent impression." Furthermore, the author underscores the pervasive nature of bells in the region's culture. For example, of one village he notes that: "Not one resident of Valsonne cannot remember having heard these bells . . . "
It is from the old French word quadrillon--for a set of four bells--that the name of the musical instrument carillon comes. Nowadays, a carillon normally has four octaves of bells, although more or fewer are possible. In fact, the Dutch require an instrument to have 11/2 octaves of bells to qualify as a carillon, and Americans insist on two chromatic octaves. The French regard this issue with more nonchalance, and this publication simply discusses "bell ensembles." Its glossary suggests that in addition to an officially accepted grand carillon de concert, there can be a petit carillon with from four to fourteen bells. This survey includes ensembles with as few as seven bells. The second criterion for inclusion in the book is that the ensemble be equipped with a keyboard and a transmission system--mechanical or electrical--for playing the bells en carillon.
While not attempting to make a thorough inventory of all the bell ensembles in the region, the book provides detailed information on a representative sampling of installations. Entries for each featured tower are very thorough, listing date, founder, and pitch of each bell; type of transmission system; name of city, tower, current and former carillonneurs, and the person or firm responsible for maintenance; dates of construction, inauguration, and modification; address and phone number of contact people; historical notes; technical descriptions of the bells, mechanics, and tower; current use and condition of the instrument; and bibliographic references and discography. The numerous photographs show bell, clappers, keyboards, clockworks, towers, frames and mountings, jacquemarts, ornamentation, inscriptions, and a founding in process. The provinces represented are the Ain, the Ardèche, the Drôme, the Isère, the Loire, the Rhône, the Savoie, and the Haute-Savoie. A map of the region would have been helpful.
The author gives a historical introduction. A history of the region's own celebrated bell foundry is furnished by its current director, Pierre Paccard. The Paccard foundry has its roots in the end of the 18th century, a point when the era of itinerant bellfounders was coming to a close. The book largely represents the work of 19th-century founders who flourished in the wake of the Revolution. Newspaper clippings, archival documents, and historical notes make for interesting reading and give insights into a slightly distant era and a very distinctive bell culture.
Incidentally, Guéritey and Editions Comp'Act have published two inventories of organs in the Rhône-Alpes region, one for Lyon and one for the rest of the Rhône province; a third--for the Isère--is in preparation. One can only hope that similarly splendid campanological publications documenting other regions of France will be forthcoming. Carpe Librum!
