Bells of Congress, The Item Info
- Title:
- Bells of Congress, The
- Sound Cloud:
- Description:
-
The Bells of Congress were presented to the United States by the Ditchley Foundation of Great Britain in 1976. A replica of the bells in London's Westminster Abbey, they are rung in honour of the opening and closing of Congress, and on state occasions and all national holidays. The Old Post Office in Washington houses the Bells of Congress and a guided tour of the building by the National Park Service is worth taking.
In the 1980s, as part of a musical delegation to Washington, D.C., representing the State of Massachusetts, I had the honour of visiting the Old Post Office and hearing the bells ring. When in full peal, the bells can take up to three and a half hours to complete their continuous performance. However, my composition on this track takes only a few minutes. I am joined by Gabriel Donohue on guitar. - Publisher:
- Séamus Connolly, Boston College Libraries
- Creator:
- Connolly, Séamus Donohue, Gabriel
- Type:
- Some transcriptions are based on historical source recordings. More info.
- Subjects:
- Folk music Fiddle tunes Planxties
- Playlist:
- Playlist 07
- Collection:
- Planxties
Source
- Preferred Citation:
- Connolly, Séamus ;Donohue, Gabriel, "Bells of Congress, The", The Séamus Connolly Collection of Irish Music, accessed July 10, 2025, https://library.bc.edu/ds/connolly/document/550.html.
- Reference Link:
- https://library.bc.edu/ds/connolly/document/550.html
Rights
- Rights:
- This website was created through a partnership with Séamus Connolly and the Boston College Libraries (2016). All materials on this site may be freely shared and adapted according to the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.