National Carillon
Encyclopedia
Aspen Island
Aspen Island is a man-made island located in the central basin of Lake Burley Griffin, in the centre of Canberra, Australia's federal capital city where the Australian National Carillon is situated. The island is linked to the mainland by a footbridge which is named after John Douglas Gordon, who...
in central Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
is a large carillon
Carillon
A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in a free-standing bell tower, or the belfry of a church or other municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cast bronze, cup-shaped bells, which are played serially to play a melody, or sounded together to play a chord...
managed and maintained by the National Capital Authority
National Capital Authority
The National Capital Authority is a body of the Australian Government that was established to manage the Commonwealth's interest in the planning and development of Canberra as the capital city of Australia....
on behalf of the Commonwealth of Australia.
History
The carillon was a gift from the BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
government to the people of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the National Capital, Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
. Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
officially opened the National Carillon on 26 April 1970. The 50 metre tall National Carillon tower was designed by Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
n architects Cameron, Chisholm & Nicol. The concept initially came from an architect Mr Don Ho working in Cameron Chisholm & Nicol in 1968
In 2004 the carillon underwent refurbishment including renovations of interior function facilities and the addition of two extra bells. Consultants were CCN, Sydney office
Characteristics
Carillons must have at least 23 bellsBell (instrument)
A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...
to be considered as such, and the National Carillon has 55 (increased from 53 during recent refurbishments http://www.nationalcapital.gov.au/experience/attractions/national_carillon.asp). Each bell weighs between seven kilograms and six tonnes. The bells span four and a half octaves chromatically
Chromatic scale
The chromatic scale is a musical scale with twelve pitches, each a semitone apart. On a modern piano or other equal-tempered instrument, all the half steps are the same size...
.
Although not large, the carillon features function facilities for small gatherings offering wonderful views over Lake Burley Griffin
Lake Burley Griffin
Lake Burley Griffin is an artificial lake in the centre of Canberra, the capital of Australia. It was completed in 1963 after the Molonglo River—which ran between the city centre and Parliamentary Triangle—was dammed...
and central Canberra.
The carillon is in regular use, chiming every quarter hour and playing a short tune on the hour along with tours and recitals on many days. The best place to listen to the carillon is suggested to be within 100 metres of the building, though the sound can usually be heard much further away in the Parliamentary Triangle, Kingston
Kingston, Australian Capital Territory
Kingston is the oldest and most densely populated suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. The suburb is named after Charles Cameron Kingston, the former Premier of South Australia and minister in the first Australian Commonwealth Government. It is adjacent to the suburbs of...
and Civic.