Preludia voor Beiaard/Preludes for Carillon; Matthias Van den Gheyn. Gilbert Huybens and Luc Rombouts, eds., part 2 of Monumenta Flandriae Musica, Eugeen Schreurs, ed. Peer: Alamire Foundation, 1997. ISBN 90-6853-120-4. Available for 1990 BF plus postage from: Alamire Muziekuitgeverij; Postbus 45; 3990 Peer, Belgium; ph: 32.11.63.21.64; fax: 32.11.63.49.11; e-mail: <[email protected]>; web site:<http://www.innet.be/musica/alamire>.
This publication is a milestone in the carillon literature. The preludes themselves are the most significant 18th-century contributions to the carillon repertory. Ever since knight Xavier van Elewyck rediscovered the carillon preludes of Matthias Van den Gheyn in the 19th century, carillonneurs have based their playing editions on a manuscript made by Van Elewyck's copyist--a hastily made manuscript riddled with mistakes and unclear notation. With the discovery and publication of an autograph manuscript, previously unknown mistakes come to light, and many of the riddles can be solved.
The boxed set includes two volumes, the first of which is a facsimile of the autograph manuscript acquired by the Louvain University Archive on 19 April 1995. The manuscript includes the eleven preludes--with the exception of the final page of the Cuckoo Prelude--as well as six carillon arrangements of existing music: an allegro in D, an untitled piece in D, and aria in G, a six-section "Cantate," a menuet in C, and an andante in D. The second volume consists of editorial commentary and a new performance edition of the eleven preludes based on the autograph. All essays are in Dutch with clear English translations by Todd Fair.
Codicologist Chris Coppens and paleographer Marc Nelissen confirm that both the text and the music notation in the manuscript are in the hand of Matthias Van den Gheyn. The editors provide a short history of the performance of the preludes, and they examine the relation between the other manuscript copies of the preludes that exist or are known to have existed. They also give some consideration to the question "for which carillon were the preludes composed?"
The editors give a cursory explanation of their rationale for choices made in the performing edition. This leaves considerable room for discussion. For example, they state simply that "incorrect note values have been corrected." Without further justification they have changed, not corrected, note values such as the dotted rhythms in the early measures of Prelude Six. In the same prelude, they invent a quirky rhythmic pattern--for which there is no basis in the manuscript--in order to avoid one of Van den Gheyn's shifts from triple to duple divisions of the beat. As in the past, carillonneurs concerned with performance practice and performances directed at authenticity will need to scrutinize the manuscript, realizing that the performing editions--including this most recent one--are subjective interpretations. Fortunately we now have an autograph manuscript.
The publication is "Dedicated to Xavier van Elewyck and Ronald Barnes, with respect for the roles played by each in studying the work of Matthias Van den Gheyn." As an invaluable reference for historically informed performance and study, it belongs in the library of every serious carillonneur and campanologist. Carpe Librum!
News from abroad
* Wallonian carillonneur Edmond de Vos writes in Bulletin Campanaire about the carillon and the history of Chimay, Belgium. The 26 bells are playable automatically, via the mechanical drum connected to the clock, or manually via a machine à carillonner--a piano-type keyboard with large keys. The carillon was restored in 1997 by the Clock-o-Matic firm, and because of its rarity and historical interest the mechanical piano-type keyboard was kept in service.
* Carmen Bernad V. E. Hijos announced that a 72-bell carillon was installed in the Basilica of San Pascual van Villarreal, 50 km north of Valencia. The total weight of the bells, cast in France, is 12,000 kg. The inauguration was to have taken place on 17 May 1998.
* Rosemarie Seuntiëns writes in Klok en Klepel about the history of the St. Petrus-banden Tower in Venray, The Netherlands, and its 50-bell carillon. A new type of tumblers was adapted for the instrument's traction system. Rather than the traditional roller bars or directed cranks, the new tumblers involve a thin steel cable that turns over a round wheel whose axis is placed off-center. The system seems to be effective for short, relatively direct connections; the action is supple, and dynamic possibilities are optimal.
* The Petit & Fritsen Bellfoundry was commissioned to cast a 36-bell carillon for the Presbyterian Church in La Porte, Indiana.
* Petit & Fritsen was commissioned to cast an 84-bell carillon (E, F-sharp, G-sharp, chromatic to F) with a bourdon of approximately 8500 kilograms and a total weight of 42,300 kilograms. The donors have not yet disclosed the specific location in America where this "Millennium Carillon" will be located.
* A 51-bell Eijsbouts carillon was installed in Hamburg and dedicated on 24 July 1993. The instrument has a completely chromatic range from C to d. It has a unique setting amidst the ruins of the St. Nicholas' Church. Hamburger Richard Brinkmann is the carillonneur.
* Currently, one of the heaviest bells in the world can be found in Cologne, Germany. However, a Cologne television station reported last May that the American city of Newport (the particular state was not mentioned) has commissioned a 30 metric ton (approximately 33 US tons) bell from the Paccard Bellfoundry in time for millennium celebrations. The bell will be 3.6 meters high (11 feet) and cost over $360,000. It will be housed in a tower over 450 meters high.
