Wednesday, October 22, 2008

ABC Wednesdays - N is for National


This is the National Carillon, situated on a small island on Lake Burley Griffin in the centre of Canberra. The 50 metre tall structure houses 55 bells; weighing as little as 7 kilograms up to a massive 6 tons and covering four and a half octaves.

The National Carillon was a gift from the British Government to the people of Australia to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the National Capital. Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the National Carillon on 26 April 1970.

The bells chime every quarter hour and regular recitals are given. On Sunday we heard part of a concert by a carillonist, Susan Antcliff.

Click here for a link to a virtual tour of the National Carillon.

Canberra is our National capital and if you look back on my posts on Sunday and Monday, you will see some more National buildings lit up at night.

We just arrived home from our holiday in Canberra; hence the reason for this post being up a bit later than usual. I did have my laptop and a 3G mobile wireless modem with me, so I was able to get posts up during the trip. Last night we were staying in a town where they only had a GSM network which was quite slow, so I decided to delay today's post until I got home.

To find out more about ABC Wednesdays and see other participants' contributions go to the ABC Wednesdays' site or to see direct links to their own sites go here.


17 comments:

antigoni said...

Great post and beautiful photos.

Rinkly Rimes said...

I've never heard of a carillonist before. I suppose that's the right name for a bell-ringer?

Anonymous said...

You learn something every day. Must be quite a sound.

earthlingorgeous said...

Wow! The bell chimes every quarter hour? Awesome. Thanks for the new knowledge. Great N

Mark Bormann said...

I came here looking for some photos of Adelaide (where I used to live) and instead have come across some fantastic photos of Canberra (where I've been living for the past 2 years). You seem to have seen more of the sights than I have.

Hope you didn't choke on too much of the airborne fluff that was everywhere in the last week...

Gordon said...

Mark - that fluff from the trees was certainly tedious; especially as we were riding bikes.

Jane Hards Photography said...

Excellent N, and two images of night and day.

AphotoAday said...

Interesting architecture, and what a great gift from the British government.

Bear Naked said...

I wonder how many years it takes to become a carillonist?
I guess she wouldn't have any homework.

Bear((( )))

photowannabe said...

It must have been a lovely concert to hear.
Every quarter hour seems like a lot of bells ringing in 24 hours.

Leslie: said...

I imagine the bells sound wonderful and I'd love to hear them! :D

Richard Lawry said...

I love the shot of the carillon at night. I would love to hear it.

An Arkie's Musings

Jay said...

I'd like to hear that! It sounds wonderful.

When I was a child I lived within earshot of St Paul's Cathedral, London. I still remember the sound of the bells on Sunday mornings. :)

Raquel Sabino Pereira said...

Hello, Mate!!!!!
Nice post!!
I have finally joined this Meme!!!
(and now I am praying to be able to post on a weekly basis...)

Neva said...

What a great looking building!! Glad you had a nice trip!!

DeniseinVA said...

What an amazing bell tower, such a beautiful structure. I love the photos and the one at night is spectacular.

Kim from Hiraeth said...

I've never heard the word carillon and I'm glad to have seen yours.