It was written in 1793 for a new clock in Great St Mary's, the University Church in Cambridge. The Church of St Mary the Great, Cambridge for which the chime was written An actual recording may be heard in the summary section above. Note that the following sounds have been recreated as electronic, MIDI files and do not necessarily represent the actual sounds of the bells and that the pitch of the Big Ben clip is closer to F than E in modern concert pitch.
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The first and third quarters finish on the dominant, B, while the half and full hours finish on the tonic, E, producing the satisfying musical effect that has contributed to the popularity of the chimes. To address this, the fourth quarter bell is equipped with two hammers on opposite sides and becomes, effectively, a fifth bell for the mechanism to play. Note that the number of changes used matches the number of quarter hours passed.īecause the five changes are used twice, and in the same sequence, the mechanism that trips the hammers needs to be programmed with only five changes instead of ten, reducing its complexity.īoth the third quarter and the full hour require the fourth quarter bell, B 3, to be rung twice in quick succession (changes 4,5,1 and 2,3,4,5) too quick for the hammer to draw back for the second strike. Third quarter, changes 4, 5 and 1 The full hour, changes 2, 3, 4 and 5 followed by one strike for each hour past 12 midnight or 12 noon struck on the Great Bell known as Big Ben in E 3. This sequence of five changes is used twice every hour as follows:įirst quarter, change 1.
This generates five unique changes as follows: : 95 Įach of the five changes is played as three crotchets (quarter note) and a minim (half note) and are always played in the sequence 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. The quarters consist of five changes, combinations of the four pitches provided by these quarter bells ( G ♯ 4, F ♯ 4, E 4, B 3) in the key E major. The Westminster Quarters are sounded by four quarter bells hung next to Big Ben in the Elizabeth Tower belfry in the Palace of Westminster. The quarter bells shown hung around Big Ben, December 1858
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