Discover the magic and mysticism of bells around the world, including
their political and religious power, their musicality, and their
familiarity in daily life.
We live in a world of bells but seldom notice them. However, bells have
existed in all cultures since earliest times and are one of the world's
most remarkable artifacts. They have been the "voice" of God and Buddha,
a talisman for early monastics, a source of glorious music, and part of
many sacred rituals. Yet, they have also been the clocks, school bells,
fire bells, and shop bells of daily life. The Song of the Bells brings
together seventeen stories that explore the magic and mysticism of these
bells, their political and religious power, their wide-ranging
musicality, and their familiarity in our everyday lives.
The stories range from the recently discovered chimes of Ancient China
to the music of carillons and change ringing to reindeer bells in Arctic
Norway to the surprising bell that is on the International Space
Station. Other stories explore Buddhist bells in Japan and Tibet, the
famous African bells of Benin, Russian bells, early Christian bells in
Scotland, the Liberty Bell and Big Ben, bells on trains, cable cars, and
circus wagons, and two bells brought up from lost ships to serve as
memorials for their crews. Illustrated with 130 photographs, this
beautiful book brings bells out from the background of our days to
create a living history of this amazing musical instrument.
The book is inspired by her great-grandmother's trip around the world
where she collected small bells almost one hundred years ago. Whitehead
inherited these bells, which led to her own journeys that included
crossing the Pacific to see the famous bells of China, finding peace in
the Buddhist temples of Kyoto, interviewing the Sami reindeer herders in
Arctic Norway, visiting with master bell ringers in London and Florida,
and attending the launch of a space shuttle and conversations with the
astronaut who suggested putting a bell in the International Space
Station.
The book will interest bell collectors, musicians, and fans of musical
instruments, as well as museums, universities, and libraries that have
musical instrument collections. It will also appeal to general readers
interested in cultural history, particularly the popular field of
"commodity history," similar to Mark Kurlansky's books Salt, Paper,
and Salmon.
