Restored Burton Tower carillon will ring out again on University of Michigan campus

The university will mark the carillon’s restoration and 75th anniversary with a series of concerts Tuesday afternoon and evening, capped by a 10 p.m. performance by Steven Ball, the University of Michigan carillonneur.

It was Ball who, recognizing the “irreplaceable musical quality” of the original bells saved them from the scrap heap and found the keyboard in the possession of Egyptologist James Harris, the university said in a press release. Harris donated the keyboard back to the university after Ball contacted him.

The bells were silenced last April for the restoration project. In addition to the restored bells, the carillon now has all-new clappers, designed and fabricated according to the original patterns. The largest bell weighs 12 tons and strikes the hour; the smallest bell weighs 16.5 pounds.

The carillon, housed in Burton Tower on the University of Michigan Central Campus, was donated in 1936 by Charles Baird, a U-M alumnus and former athletic director.

The carillon is controlled by a keyboard of wooden levers and pedals, played with the fists and the feet. Each lever connects to a hammer inside a bell. When the lever is depressed, the hammer strikes the bell and rings it. No computers or electricity is involved.

The University of Michigan added a second carillon, the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Carillon on North Campus in 1996.

Burton Tower, which besides the carillon, houses classrooms and offices for the School of Music,, has also recently undergone renovations. Last fall, the university began repairing stonework and replacing metal flashing on the tower and repairing the metal framework supporting the carillon. Those repairs necessitated stopping the tower’s clock, but it has since been restarted.

The schedule of events Tuesday is as follows:

Noon: All bells in the city of Ann Arbor will ring, followed by carillon recitals at Burton Memorial Tower by Jim Fackenthal, by Bill DeTurk at 2 p.m., and Lyn Fuller at 4 p.m. 4:30 p.m.: Lecture on “The History of the Organ in the Motion Picture Theater” at Michigan Theater:

5 p.m.: Showing of “The Casting of the Baird Carillon” (1936) and “The Back Page” (1936), at the Michigan Theater

6 p.m.: Carillon recital at Burton Memorial Tower by Carrie Poon

7 p.m.: Grand opening of the new exhibit on bells at Hill Auditorium

10 p.m.: “The Phantom of the Opera,” performed at Burton Tower by Steven Ball

All events are free and open to the public. The Burton Memorial Tower deck and chamber will be open to the public during the day, from noon to midnight, except during performances and again immediately after the film.