La campana della sera
Jul 15, 07:41 PM
This sound comes from the local church of the town in northern Italy where I grew up. It's been a regular, dependable, unchanging part of my life until I left home, and even after I left home, first moving cities, and then countries, and only came back to visit.
The "campana della sera" (evening bell) used to ring every night at 21:00 for exactly five minutes. I believe it used to signal the end of the day for a community mostly based on farming. My family have many memories linked to the bells. My paternal grandfather used to be the town's bell ringer for many years, before the whole process was automated with the arrival of a timer clock and a small engine. He would cycle up to the church and ring the bells at given times and - this was many decades ago, before my time - even before a particularly menacing storm. I remember that he allowed me into the bell tower a couple of times: I stood there fascinated by the noise and by the huge ropes he was pulling.
Sadly, the bell as it is heard in this recording (from 2016) is no longer heard. A few years ago, after requests from residents, the monotone chime was replaced by a shorter melody, apparently more suited to modern ears. Now when I'm over there and I hear the new melody, the whole place feels different and like it's no longer my hometown.
Recorded by Giulia Biasibetti.
Part of the Migration Sounds project, the world’s first collection of the sounds of human migration.
For more information and to explore the project, see https://www.citiesandmemory.com/migration
The "campana della sera" (evening bell) used to ring every night at 21:00 for exactly five minutes. I believe it used to signal the end of the day for a community mostly based on farming. My family have many memories linked to the bells. My paternal grandfather used to be the town's bell ringer for many years, before the whole process was automated with the arrival of a timer clock and a small engine. He would cycle up to the church and ring the bells at given times and - this was many decades ago, before my time - even before a particularly menacing storm. I remember that he allowed me into the bell tower a couple of times: I stood there fascinated by the noise and by the huge ropes he was pulling.
Sadly, the bell as it is heard in this recording (from 2016) is no longer heard. A few years ago, after requests from residents, the monotone chime was replaced by a shorter melody, apparently more suited to modern ears. Now when I'm over there and I hear the new melody, the whole place feels different and like it's no longer my hometown.
Recorded by Giulia Biasibetti.
Part of the Migration Sounds project, the world’s first collection of the sounds of human migration.
For more information and to explore the project, see https://www.citiesandmemory.com/migration