Richard has been ringing church bells for about 20 years. Bell ringing has a long tradition in England stretching back to 400AD. Read on to learn more about this fascinating activity . Richard is a senior philosophy student in the Midlands.
Bell Ringing
Richard Scarth, Birmingham, UK
Since my teenage years, the sound of church bells has always been fascinating. Then 20 years ago, in my mid-50s, with my local church just a five-minute walk from home, it was the ideal time for me to have a go.
At last I was going to find out what went on behind those doors leading to the spiral staircase up to the ringing rooms. These rooms across England are frequented weekly by over 40,000 ringers.
Of the thousands of church towers worldwide with ‘full circle ringing’ (see below), the vast majority are in England. If you have spent any time here, almost certainly you will have heard the sound of church bells. Across the countryside, in towns and cities, church bells are the second most recognisable part of the soundscape after bird song.
The art of bell ringing
Our church tower bells are rung in such a way that they sound one after another repeatedly. Traditionally bells ring for about 30 minutes before a formal church service.
Once the ringing has begun, any changes in the order of the bells are called out by a conductor. The art of each bell ringer is to keep the same time interval during the change. It is a real team effort to do this perfectly. It involves at least one bell ringing sooner and another ringing later. Each bell also requires a different amount of ‘pull’ on the rope by the ringer.
So, how do you do bell ringing?
Full circle bell ringing only commenced in the early 1600s. ‘Full circle ringing’ is when all the bells in the tower pivot through 360 degrees and then back again. They swing back and forth through a full circle each under the control of a single ringer. We begin with all the bells raised, their mouths upwards, resting against a small piece of wood called the stay.
Our tenor weighs 399kg and the treble is approximately 200kg. In my first few weeks I practised with the number three bell, somewhere in between. I learned that the rope is called a Sally. I also learnt to pull it just enough to keep the bell under control. If we pull the rope too hard, the stay hits a stop and breaks. The ringer must then immediately let go of the rope. Otherwise he/she will be carried very quickly towards the ceiling. The stay has to be replaced before that bell can be rung again.
I’m glad to say that, over time, I mastered the safe handling of all our bells and took on the job of teaching ringing to any newcomers. This automatically advances my own skill as it’s still work in progress for me.
Church towers can house from three to twelve or more bells but six to eight is the norm. The heaviest bell is referred to as the tenor, with weight equivalent to anything from a medium-sized load of bricks up to four tonnes and over. The treble is the lightest and therefore smallest bell.
Relaxing into the rhythm
When the bell I am controlling with a single rope is swinging through 360° clockwise/anticlockwise above your head, the real practice is to connect with the senses and relax. I observe the pull of the rope and at a glance also take in the order of the other bells, particularly the ones before and after me. They are the bells that I could be asked to change to by the conductor. Then I need to sense any change in pulling power so that I achieve the same time interval as the other bells. The bell always sounds as my hands go past my face going upwards, so its a fraction of a second after I’ve pulled the Sally down.
On the other stroke, my bell sounds a fraction of a second after I have pulled the tail of the rope down. That’s just as my hands reach upwards again past my face to grasp the tail of the Sally. Relaxing into this steady rhythym, listening and being fully present are essential.
Teaching Bell Ringing
Newcomers find all this helpful as they endeavour to pick up the skill of safely ringing bells that can be over 10 times their own weight. Younger ringers learn at a frighteningly quick pace as they seem to just do it rather than think about it too much. Even children as young as seven, as long they are tall enough, can learn to ring. They simply start on a lighter bell and stand on a box.
Teaching bell ringing to others is a challenge indeed. Organisations like the Association of Ringing Teachers (ART) have excellent advice on breaking down the required skills into minute elements. However, I’ve discovered it needs something more.
We all learn new skills in different ways but primarily it is through practice, observation then more practice. That observation and effort has to come from within the learner. What a teacher can do is check that the feedback contains an element of bliss, enough to give the learner the incentive to practise more. And come back for more the following week!
As with all teaching, if you can do it in a calm manner, with a smile on your face, that makes it much easier. So the measure for my tower on a good practice night is that everybody is smiling as they go down the spiral staircase at the end of the session. If the neighbours have enjoyed the ringing so much the better.
Bell ringing for special occasions
There is such variety in bell ringing. The joyous sound of a peal of bells for a wedding strongly contrasts with the sound of one bell tolling for a funeral.
The coronation of King Charles III on 6th May 2023 provided a huge incentive for us join in special ringing events. The Central Council of Church Ringers encouraged all churches to ring their bells on the day. They recruited and trained many new ringers in the months leading up to the event.
Eight months earlier, we had used a special technique to mark the death and funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. We attached leather muffs on one side of a the bell clappers so the bell only fully rang on alternate pulls of the rope. This created a very doleful sound.
For me, the most poignant moment in bell ringing was when the ringers in my tower decided to muffle all eight bells and start ringing as the cortege to my wife’s funeral walked slowly towards the church.
And finally, the joy of bell ringing!
Ringing is a very sociable activity. It expands and promotes physical and mental well-being. In addition to serving the community and the church, we develop our skills along the way. But most of all, it’s fun.
Click for more information on bell ringing.
Watch people learning to ring on YouTube:
Enjoyed this article? You can read about another philosopher who loves public service and volunteering.