The Bells of Florence

Project Timeline: 2010

There are hundreds of church bells in Florence, Italy. Florentines and visitors alike savor the musical sound of these bells ringing throughout the city, day and night. They ring alone or in unison for many reasons - to call parishioners to church, to chime in the hours of the day, to celebrate a wedding, or the arrival of a new year.

Previously, no archival record existed of Florence’s church bells. Sadly, many churches are moving away from ringing the actual bells to playing a recording of their chimes. The Bells of Florence project captured and recorded information on every church bell in the city, including historical details, photographs, and – perhaps most importantly – a sound recording of their actual chimes.

Friends of Florence, in conjunction with Florentine musician and composer Anthony Sidney, produced The Bells of Florence project, which was funded by our Florence Chapter. A DVD documenting the project, including the tolling of the bells, was produced and first presented during the Friends of Florence Florence Chapter’s holiday dinner at the Museo di San Marco in December 2010. Copies of the DVD have been sent to the most important regional libraries of Italy, including La Biblioteca Nazionale di Firenze, for their archival use.

Donors

• Laurel and Tom Barrack
  
• Alison Gilligan and David Curtis
  
• The Florence Chapter of Friends of Florence
  
• Anjela and Ted Guarriello
  
• Carmen and Jeff Kobacker
  
• Diana Richman and Jim Abellera
  
• Sonya and Darren Schroeder
  
• Connie and Jeff Tarrant
  
• Allyson and Santo Volpe