TUBULAR BELLS

Tubular bells and hammers. Click on the audio icon beneath the art to hear the sound of tubular also called orchestral bells, or orchestral chimes, series of tuned brass (originally bronze) tubes of graded length, struck with wooden hammers to produce a sound. They were probably introduced about 1885 in England by John Harrington. Large tubular bells were at first used as a substitute for church bells in towers. Smaller tubes were later built to be controlled from an organ manual or, in the orchestra, to be played directly by a percussionist. As orchestral chimes, tubular bells can attain greater rhythmic precision than true bells, and their tone is clearer, for it emphasizes fewer higher harmonics. The instrument's compass normally extends 11/2 octaves upward from the C above middle C.