Free Carillon Concert at Penn State Behrend October 2, 2010

Dennis Curry, carillonneur at Kirk-in-the-Hills Presbyterian Church in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., will give a free recital on the Floyd and Juanita Smith Carillon at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, on Saturday, Oct. 2.

The one-hour outdoor performance begins at 1:30 p.m.; concertgoers are encouraged to bring a blanket or chair and sit on the lawn of the Larry and Kathryn Smith Chapel. In the event of rain, covered seating will be available under the eaves of the Jack Burke Research and Economic Development Center and inside the chapel.

Cider and donuts will be served during the concert.

The 48 bells of Penn State Behrend’s Floyd and Juanita Smith Carillon are hung in an 80-foot tower. They do not swing. Instead, a clapper is brought to the bell using levers and a system of counter springs. The carillon is played from a hand clavier located inside Smith Chapel.

The largest of the bells weighs 1,344 pounds and has a 40-inch diameter. The smallest weighs 15 and one-quarter pounds and measures just under seven inches at the mouth. They were cast by bell founders Meeks, Watson & Co. of Georgetown, Ohio, of bell metal, an alloy of 80 percent copper and 20 percent tin that has been used for carillon bells since the 1600s. The 48 bells cover four octaves, which permits performance of almost the entire literature of carillon music.

For additional information about the performance phone the Smith Chapel office at 814-898-6609.