Tintinnabulation
/ˌtɪntɪˌnæbyəˈleɪʃən/ [tin-ti-nab-yuh-ley-shuhn]
Etymology: Dictionary.com says it's a USism of approximately 1825, from tintinnabulary (dated from 1787), familial with tintinnabulatory (1827), and tintinnabulum "small bell" (1398).
Def: The sound of ringing, especially with the characteristic harmonics of bells; from Latin tinnire to ring (whence also tinnitus, the medical term for a high-pitched ringing or buzzing in the ears)
Used as a title in the wonderful groundbreaking nature recording series Environments about 35 years ago (on the other side was "Dawn at New Hope, Pennsylvania"), the vinyl "Tintinnabulation" was a slow-motion sonic parsing of overtones from large bells, intended to be played at any of multiple speeds for different effects (you can't do that with CDs ).
Why: just a belated salute to the 199th birthday of Edgar Allan Poe (19 Jan 1809):
HEAR the sledges with the bells —
Silver bells!
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,
In the icy air of night!
While the stars that oversprinkle
All the heavens, seem to twinkle
With a crystalline delight;
Keeping time, time, time,
In a sort of Runic rhyme,
To the tintinnabulation that so musically wells
From the bells, bells, bells, bells,
Bells, bells, bells —
From the jingling and the tinkling of the bells.
--Poe, The Bells, verse I
Tintinnabulation
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- Grand Panjandrum
- Posts: 1476
- Joined: Wed Apr 12, 2006 1:58 pm
- Location: Carolinia Agrestícia: The Forest Primeval
Tintinnabulation
Last edited by sluggo on Sun Feb 03, 2008 8:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Stop! Murder us not, tonsured rumpots! Knife no one, fink!
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- Grand Panjandrum
- Posts: 1476
- Joined: Wed Apr 12, 2006 1:58 pm
- Location: Carolinia Agrestícia: The Forest Primeval
Semi-omniminous at least... back on Friday September 14 2001 when most of the US radio stations interrupted at midday to play a few minutes of mourning bells for the events three days prior, I used this record for WWOZ's airwaves. It really imparted a stately texture beyond the stock footage everybody else was using.One hopes that these were not ominous, the bell tolls for thee, overtones.a slow-motion sonic parsing of overtones from large bells
Might call it ... music ominous one?
Stop! Murder us not, tonsured rumpots! Knife no one, fink!
-
- Grand Panjandrum
- Posts: 1476
- Joined: Wed Apr 12, 2006 1:58 pm
- Location: Carolinia Agrestícia: The Forest Primeval
Semi-omniminous at least... back on Friday September 14 2001 when most of the US radio stations interrupted at midday to play a few minutes of mourning bells for the events three days prior, I used this record for WWOZ's airwaves. It really imparted a stately texture beyond the stock footage everybody else was using.One hopes that these were not ominous, the bell tolls for thee, overtones.a slow-motion sonic parsing of overtones from large bells
Might call it ... music ominous one?
Stop! Murder us not, tonsured rumpots! Knife no one, fink!
"Sanctuary! Sanctuary! Sanctuary!"
For some really lovely bells, google Cast in Bronze.
For some really lovely bells, google Cast in Bronze.
Last edited by gailr on Mon Jan 21, 2008 1:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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