The quarter bells shown hung aroundBig Ben, December 1858
The Westminster Quarters are sounded by four quarter bells hung next toBig Ben in the Elizabeth Tower belfry, in thePalace of Westminster. These are:[2]
The quarters consist of five changes,permutations of the fourpitches provided by these quarter bells (G♯4,F♯4,E4,B3) in the keyE major. This generates five unique changes as follows:[3]: 95 [4]
G♯4, F♯4, E4, B3
E4, G♯4, F♯4, B3
E4, F♯4, G♯4, E4
G♯4, E4, F♯4, B3
B3, F♯4, G♯4, E4
Each of the five changes is played as threecrotchets (quarter note) and aminim (half note) and are always played in the sequence 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. This sequence of five changes is used twice every hour as follows:
First quarter, change 1.
Half hour, changes 2 and 3.
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 asBig Ben in E3.
The number of changes used matches the number of quarter hours passed.
Because 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.
Both the third quarter and the full hour require the fourth quarter bell, B3, 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. 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.
The first and third quarters finish on thedominant, B, while the half and full hours finish on thetonic, E, producing the satisfying musical effect that has contributed to the popularity of the chimes.
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 modernconcert pitch. An actual recording may be heard in the summary section above.
The Westminster Quarters were originally written in 1793 for a new clock inGreat St Mary's, theUniversity Church inCambridge. There is some doubt over exactly who composed it:Joseph Jowett,Regius Professor of Civil Law, was given the job, but he was probably assisted by eitherJohn Randall (1715–1799), who was theProfessor of Music from 1755, or his undergraduate pupil,William Crotch (1775–1847). This chime is traditionally, though without substantiation,[7] believed to be a set of variations on the four notes that make up the fifth and sixth bars of "I know that my Redeemer liveth" fromHandel'sMessiah.[8][1]: 8–9 This is why the chime is also played by the bells of the so-calledRed Tower inHalle, the native town of Handel.
According to the church records ofTrinity Episcopal Church (Williamsport, Pennsylvania), this chime sequence was incorporated into a tower clock mechanism byE. Howard & Co., Boston, Massachusetts. The clock and chime in Trinity's steeple base was dedicated in December 1875. It holds the distinction of being the first tower clock in the United States to sound the Cambridge Quarters.[10]
A London Symphony byRalph Vaughan Williams incorporates the half-hour changes, 2 and 3, near the beginning of the work and the first three changes of the hour, 2, 3 and 4, near the end.
"The Westminster Waltz", a light orchestral piece byRobert Farnon (1956) uses the music of the chimes.[11][13]
Thetheme music byRonnie Hazlehurst for the satirical TV seriesYes Minister (1980–1984) and its sequelYes, Prime Minister (1986–1988), about a British politician and his interactions with the civil servants who nominally serve him, is largely based on the chimes (though with a longer duration for the first note of each quarter, which arguably makes the derivation less obvious). When asked in an interview about itsWestminster influence, Hazlehurst replied, "That's all it is. It's the easiest thing I've ever done."[14]
The song "Cider",Japanese:サイダー, byAkai Ko-en (2014) incorporates the Third Quarter chime.
A composition based on the chimes was written in theladrang form for central Javanesegamelan. It is named variously asladrang Wesminster,ladrang Wesmister,ladrang Wèsmèster, etc.
AtYankee Stadium, the chimes are played whenever a member of theNew York Yankees scores a run, a tradition that began at their original ballpark (the beginning of "Workaholic" by2 Unlimited).[16]
Indonesian train stations play the chimesas a sign of train departures and arrivals.[17] Upon arrival, the chimes are looped continuously until departure, which may last up to 15 minutes.
Most schools in Japan and Taiwan play the chimes to signal the end and beginning of classes.[18][19][20][21][22]
At the close of theWarner Bros.cartoonsNow Hear This (1963), the first four notes of the Westminster Quarters play to bring on the four elements of the abstract "WB" lettering, then as the words "A Warner Bros. CartOOn" scroll appear, Big Ben chimes, and then as the lettersOO inCartoon separate from the words, a bicycle horn is heard squeaking three times. Big Ben gives one more chime as the words finish appearing on the screen before the fadeout.[citation needed]
For themillennium New Year, a recording of the clock was released byLondon Records in 1999, titled "Millennium Chimes", with the artist labelled as Big Ben. It reached number 53 on theUK Singles Chart for the week ending 8 January 2000 (which included purchases prior to 31 December 1999).[27][28]
The Dutch progressive rock bandFocus (band) quotes the Third Quarter chime at the end of the title song from their 1974Hamburger Concerto album.
In theUnited States, electronicstorm sirens commonly use the Westminster full-hour chime in place of a siren tone for regular tests to avoid confusion among the public.
Harrison’s note 16 in turn cites Starmer (1907),[1] in footnote 6, so this ultimately traces back to Amp’s account,[citation needed] who is quoted by Raven,[citation needed] who is quoted by Starmer.[1]: 8–9
