Birmingham Hidden Gems: The story of the Bournville Carillon

Just a few miles south of Birmingham city centre here in Bournville is the home of Great Britain’s largest Carillon.

You may be wondering what a Carillon actually is? Well, if like us you didn’t know until we went to visit, it is a set of bells played using a keyboard or by an automatic mechanism similar to a piano roll.

This is a pretty impressive technology - getting huge metal bells to operate from a keyboard, with not a bell ringer in sight.

But, in addition, Bournville’s Carillon is the largest of its kind here in Great Britain - utilising an impressive 48 bells, which weigh in at a total of 17 and a half tonnes, which enable the instrument to play 4 octaves.

The Carillon, a percussive instrument, is played similarly to an organ, only the tones are produced by striking batons on a keyboard with your fists, meaning that playing the instrument requires a considerable amount of energy.

The Bournville Carillon was installed by George Cadbury back in 1906 following a visit to Belgium as a gift to his workers in the model village. While only one of the original bells still remain in the belfry, the instrument has been maintained over the years by the Cadbury family.

With it’s history stretching back over a century, we find out what makes this instrument one of the finest of its kind in the world.

Trevor Workman, Bournville Carilloneur, says: “The carillon as an instrument is quite a rarity in this country. There's only 15 carillons and only four of those are - by definition - four octave instruments. And this carillon has been here - not in its present form but - it was installed by George Cadbury in 1906.

“And he was in the process of building the village and the factory and - this was all green fields in Bournville originally - he heard the carillon in Bruges - probably was something he'd never heard before.

“Most people that come up here now, they've never heard them before. So and he was taken with the whole concept and the sound and the range of music and everything.

“So he he made it a point of making sure that when when the when the village was built - and they were already building the school I think at the time - that a carillon should be in place to benefit the the ambience and Bournville.”

“We know from experience that people - using a crude phrase - are always gobsmacked when they walk through that door. Even people that have lived in Bournville and have heard the carillon.

“They hear the carillon and they find out that come and look. So that's how they find out and they're more often than not absolutely amazed - and we know the reaction that people have.

“And it's just - I mean - it's just an incredible instrument. It's unique in that it can perform in the open air for people that live within a - I don't know depends on the wind but -within two mile, three mile, four mile - probably - radius of the carillon can hear it. And we get a lot of people - we've got a resident audience obviously. So it's big responsibility as to what to play and when to play.”

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