Posts Tagged Hopeman Memorial Carillon

Recent physics graduate Alex Johnson ’19 had never played the bells before coming to Rochester. Now he is one of the best musicians in the world at the instrument, taking first place at the international Queen Fabiola Carillon Competition.

The free summer carillon recitals on the University of Rochester’s Eastman Quadrangle continue on Monday evenings in July.

With a major in physics and a minor in music, Alex Johnson ’19 is heading to Belgium after graduation to learn more about “the bells” that inspired him in Rochester. “Lots of deciding to do. There isn’t a wrong decision.”

Free carillon concerts are back this summer, with music from top performers from around the world every Monday in July.

On the 50th anniversary of the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., the University will join others across the nation who will ring their bells in tribute.

The familiar sound of the bells in tower of Rush Rhees Library will be silenced for the next few weeks, while parts of the Hopeman Memorial Carillon are under restoration.

How do you learn to play an instrument comprised of 50 bells that lives at the top of a library tower? Practice, practice, practice. A student team has finished building a new digital carillon that will allow students to learn to play tough pieces while hearing real carillon sounds.

The University will begin its annual summer carillon series on Monday, July 6, with a performance from award-winning carillonneur Joey Brink. The concert is the first of four free outdoor shows that will take place during the month of July on Monday evenings at 7 p.m. on the Eastman Quad on River Campus.

One of just seven carillons in New York State, the University’s Hopeman carillon replaced the former 17-bell Hopeman Memorial Chime in 1973.

The free outdoor concerts on the Eastman Quadrangle are open to the public and take place Monday evenings in July.