On Dec. 31, he climbed more than 200 steps to the top of the landmark cathedral to usher in the new year for the 53rd consecutive year on one of the world’s finest church bell instruments.
As the bells of St Colman’s Cathedral in Cobh echoed across Cork Harbour, Ireland’s only carilloner, Adrian Gebreuers, 80, said he hoped to continue playing this wonderful instrument for years to come.
“The longest-playing carilloner in the world was still playing when he was 100 years old,” he said.
“But he was playing in an American church tower that had an elevator. St. Colman’s doesn’t have an elevator, so it’s important to stay healthy.”
“You have to climb 200 steps to get to the play room, which is right above the clock in the bell tower. And that’s just to get to work.
“I try to stay fit and swim in the pool three times a week at 6.30am.
“There are about 700 carillons in the world, but not many performers. I often say it’s like a musical art that is forever on the verge of extinction.
“But I have two granddaughters, Amy and Ella, who are learning to play the bells.
“I don’t believe in the idea of imposing family traditions on the next generation. So I don’t know if they will carry on the family traditions or not. As long as they want to do it, I’m happy to do it.” .”
Mr. Gebruls had a small group of family and friends gather in his playhouse on New Year’s Eve to continue a great family tradition that began in 1924 when his father, Dr. Staf Gebruls, who lived in Antwerp, was invited by Mr. Gebruls. I watched over it. Cove will be organist, carilloner, and choral director.
When he suddenly passed away in 1970, Adrian took over. Last September, Bishop William Crean commemorated the Gebrus family’s remarkable century of service to the Church by celebrating a special Mass.
St Colman’s 49-bell carillon is the only such instrument in Ireland and the largest in Ireland and the UK.
The carillon was cast by the Taylor family of Loughborough and 42 bells were installed in 1916. At the time, this carillon was considered one of the largest in the world. More bells were added in the 1950s. The carillon now includes Ireland’s largest bell, St. Colman’s, weighing 3.6 tonnes.
The total weight of the 49 cast bronze bells is over 25 tons and covers a range of four chromatic scales. However, it is not tuned to concert pitch, and the instrument’s low C is actually an A.
The bell is fixed in place and its clappers are activated from a console consisting of a keyboard and pedal board within the bell tower. The movement is completely mechanical and has no artificial aids.
A computer-operated automated system uses the 14 heaviest bells to chime every 15 minutes. Angelus at 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM, after-Angelus and after-strike songs at 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM, and mass bells and, if desired, funeral bells. Mr. Gebruls has full control of the bells for religious ceremonies, recitals and, of course, New Year’s Eve celebrations.
His recital on New Year’s Eve began with some Christmas carols about 15 minutes before midnight, and at midnight he played “Auld Lang Syne,” followed by other seasonal favorites.
Meanwhile, around the same time in Limerick, 25-year-old Craig Copley-Brown was among a team of bell-ringers who peeled eight bells to usher in the New Year at St Mary’s Cathedral.
Her younger brother, Noah, 11, started taking bell-ringing lessons in February and is now almost able to play without a teacher.
But Craig says, “With intensive training, you can learn to ring the bell in a few weeks or even days. But getting the timing and strikes right can take years.
“I see a crowd gathering outside at the intersection. Just as it’s getting close to midnight, I see people gathering. Then I ring the bell for about 20 minutes, and when it’s over and I come outside, there’s no one left. I was there.
“We typically rely on subsequent video to gauge people’s reactions.”
Gebrus says performing alone, high up in a bell tower, away from the audience, can be very isolating.
“A lot of people hear the bell, but when I come down, they don’t hear the bell,” he said.
“But social media and being able to post videos of performances has made a big difference. It allows people to comment, and they can actually comment, and they can listen. I heard from many people that they enjoyed the content.”
However, he says the cathedral setting can affect performance.
And will he comply with the request? Only if it’s the right song, he insists.
“I was once asked to play a song by a group called Guns N’ Roses,” he said.
“I looked it up and found out it was a pop or rock group.
“Then I looked into the requested song and found that it had a strong rhythm, but I couldn’t find anything particularly melody-like.
“So that song wasn’t included in that recital.”