Ronald Barnes (carillonist) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ronald Barnes
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Ronald Montague Barnes
June 11, 1927 |
| Died | November 3, 1997 (aged 70) San Francisco, California, US
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| Years active | 1946–1995 |
Ronald Montague Barnes (born June 11, 1927 – died November 3, 1997) was an American carillonist, a person who plays the carillon. He was also a composer and a musicologist, someone who studies music history and theory.
Ronald Barnes started playing the carillon as a teenager at his church. In 1952, when he was 24, he became the carillonist at the University of Kansas. There, he grew a lot as a musician. Later, he played the carillon for the Washington National Cathedral from 1963 to 1975. He then worked at the University of California, Berkeley, from 1982 until he retired in 1995. He was a very active member of The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America, serving as its president and in many other important roles.
Barnes created 56 original music pieces and hundreds of arrangements (music adapted for different instruments). He was very important in creating a unique American way of writing carillon music. He also changed how people played the carillon. Much of his music is now considered standard for students and professional carillon players. He also published old carillon music and worked to set high standards for how carillons should be played, what music should be used, and how they should be built.
Today, The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America has a special scholarship fund in his name. This fund helps support research about the carillon in North America.
Contents
Biography
Early life and education
Ronald Montague Barnes was born on June 11, 1927, in Lincoln, Nebraska. When he was about four years old, he and his parents went to the opening of a new carillon at a church in his hometown. As a teenager, Barnes took organ lessons at the church. When the church's carillon player moved away, his teacher suggested he learn the carillon too.
The church's carillon was in poor condition, and about half of its bells couldn't be rung. Ronald and his older brother worked hard to clean the instrument. They also oiled its moving parts as best they could. Since there was no carillon music available, Barnes started by playing scales on the instrument. The local churchgoers were amazed to discover their church's carillon had twice as many bells as they thought!
Barnes studied at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and earned a music degree in 1950. After World War II, Barnes served in the United States Navy. He worked with navigation tools and steered a destroyer ship. After his time in the Navy, he used a program called the G.I. Bill to go to Stanford University. He earned a master's degree in musicology (the study of music) in 1961. While studying there, he played the university's carillon in Hoover Tower. For his master's project, he studied the carillon music of Matthias Vanden Gheyn.
In 1948, Barnes went to a meeting of The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America (GCNA) at the University of Michigan. He joined the group there and played a special concert to become a recognized professional carillonist. He also met other professional players for the first time. After this meeting, Barnes went to Ottawa, Canada. He spent a summer studying the carillon at the Peace Tower with Robert Donnell. This was the only formal carillon training he ever had.
Career highlights
In 1951, Barnes accepted a job at the University of Kansas. He was hired to play its carillon, teach harpsichord, and take care of the university's musical instruments. The university wanted him to play short concerts every day at noon. They also wanted longer evening concerts twice a week. Barnes didn't have much carillon music at first.
At the University of Kansas, Barnes heard the sound of heavy, English-made bells for the first time. This sound greatly influenced his ideas about the carillon's timbre (the unique sound quality of an instrument). Barnes encouraged both teachers and students at Kansas to write new music for the carillon. For example, John Pozdro, a music theory teacher, wrote his first carillon piece in 1953.
Barnes moved to Washington, D.C., in 1963 to become the first carillonist for the Washington National Cathedral. It was hard for him to focus on writing new music there. In 1975, due to money problems at the cathedral, his full-time job ended. He then started his own business drawing and selling fun sketches. These drawings featured made-up carillons and organs, often with animals and people. His friends and fellow musicians really loved these drawings.
In 1982, the University of California, Berkeley, asked Barnes for his opinion on who should play their Class of 1928 Carillon. When they found out he was available, they hired him! Barnes helped with making the carillon bigger and fixing it several times. He also wrote a lot of music for the carillon during this time. In 1982, he started the Berkeley Carillon Institute, which was a music library and a place that published music.
Within the GCNA, Barnes was the editor of music publications. He was also the group's archivist (someone who keeps historical records). He was a judge for their yearly membership exams. As editor of their magazine, The Bulletin, he published nine issues between 1957 and 1961. He was vice president for four terms (1958–1962) and president for three terms (1962–1965). He hosted the GCNA's yearly meeting three times: at the University of Kansas in 1956, at the Washington National Cathedral in 1964, and at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1988.
Later life and death
Barnes' eyesight started to get worse, which made it hard for him to perform and compose music in 1994. By 1995, he had retired from his job at Berkeley. In early 1997, Barnes began feeling very sick. In the late summer of 1997, he was diagnosed with leukemia, a type of cancer. Barnes died from the disease in San Francisco on November 3, 1997.
In 1998, the GCNA created a special scholarship fund in his name. This fund helps support the future of carillon playing in North America. In 2007, after enough money was raised, the first grant was given out. It is now awarded every year. While North Americans used to get scholarships to study carillon in Europe, Barnes' fund was the first grant program of its kind in North America.
Legacy
As president of the GCNA and editor of its magazine, The Bulletin, Barnes worked to set new standards. These standards were for how well carillons should be played, what music should be chosen, and how well carillons should be designed and built. He preferred the word carillonist instead of carillonneur for players. He said it was gender inclusive (meaning it includes everyone), easier to say and spell, and fit with how other musicians are named.
He helped introduce the carillon to several important composers. These included Johan Franco, John Pozdro, Roy Hamlin Johnson, and Gary White. He also taught many famous people how to play the carillon.
Barnes did important research on several old carillon music papers. He studied the music of Théodore de Sany, André Dupont, and Matthias Vanden Gheyn. Barnes edited and published new versions of their music.
Through his 56 compositions, Barnes created an American way of writing music for the carillon. During his life, he received two awards: the Berkeley Medal for Distinguished Service to the Carillon (1982) and the GCNA Certificate of Extraordinary Service to the Carillon (1988). On June 24, 1995, Barnes was honored by the GCNA and given a lifetime membership.
Musical style
Barnes' music for the carillon often had a gentle, romantic feel. He was especially influenced by the carillon at the University of Kansas, which was made by John Taylor & Co. Barnes wrote music that considered the strong overtones (extra sounds that ring with the main note) of bells. His style focused on the carillon as an instrument for concerts. Many of his pieces have a melody that is easy to sing along to.
Musical compositions
Barnes wrote 56 original pieces for the carillon. All of them are published by either American Carillon Music Editions or the GCNA. He wrote more than three-quarters of his music while working at the University of California, Berkeley. Barnes composed several variations and preludes based on English folk songs and carols.
- Sarabande (1952)
- Prelude (1952)
- Promenade (1964)
- (Three Hymn Preludes)
- Picardie (1963)
- Land of Rest (1966)
- More Love (1970)
- Fantasy: Western Wind (1966)
- Serenade I (1978)
- Nativity Triptych (1978)
- Introit for Christmas Eve (1979)
- Serenade II (1979)
- Noël Suite I (1981)
- Concerto for Two to Play (1981)
- Introduction and Sicilienne (1981)
- Noël Suite II (1982)
- Signals (1982)
- Prelude on Veni Creator (1982)
- Six Classical Country Dances (1983)
- Waltz (1983)
- Variations on Wilson's Wilde (1984)
- Three Dream Dances (1984)
- A Somber Pavan (1984)
- Corelliana Suite (1984)
- Paraphrase on a Siciliana of Pasquale Ricci (1984)
- A Suite of English Folksongs (1985)
- The Lark in the Morn
- The Keys of Canterbury
- O Sally My Dear
- What If a Day
- Hares on the Mountain
- Driving Away at the Smoothing Iron
- Prelude, Intermezzo and Finale (1986)
- 14 Carillon Preludes on Appalachian White Spirituals (1986–87)
- Rise and Shine, Brothers
- Land Beyond the Clouds
- It's the Good Old Work (Pennsylvania German: Siss des gudi aldi Warrick)
- Pardoning Love
- Jesus Christ the Apple Tree
- Come Think of Death and Judgement
- O Brethren, Take Courage (Pennsylvania German: Brieder, habt noch Mut)
- Daniel in the Lion's Den
- Tranquility
- Clear the Way, the World Is Waking
- Heavenly Welcome
- Harvest Field
- Happy in Eternity (Passacaglia)
- Our Meeting Is Over
- Mrs. Nordan's Alborada (1987)
- Dances for After Dark (1987)
- Andante Cantabile (1987)
- Homage to J. S. Bach: Hymn Prelude & Fugue on "Old 104th" (1988)
- Song Prelude on "Past Three O'Clock" (1989)
- Capriccio I (1989)
- Musick for a While, Shall All Your Cares Beguile (1989)
- Menuet Champêtre Refondu (1990)
- Sonatine (1990)
- Six Preludes on Australian Christmas Carols (1990)
- Noel Time
- Christmas Bush for His Adoring
- The Silver Stars Are in the Sky
- The Three Drovers
- The Christmas Tree
- Christmas Night (Cradle Song)
- Canzone (1990)
- Song (1991)
- Capriccio II (1991)
- Three Anglo-American Folksongs (Which Caution Against Some of the Perils of Falling in Love) (1991)
- One Morning in May
- Barb'ra Allen
- Billy Boy
- Scottish Folk Song Preludes (1991)
- Go to Berwick, Johnny and Guidwife Count the Lawin
- A Rusebud by My Early Walk
- Leezie Lindsay
- We'll Meet a Beside the Dusky Glen
- Highland Laddie
- When I Think on This Warld's Pelf
- Ewie with the Crookit Horn
- Concerto Grosso I (1991)
- Paraphrase on "The Irish Carol" (1992)
- Three Sketches (1992)
- A Simple Suite (1992)
- Capriccio III (1992)
- Fantasy-Variations on "Dr. Bull's Juell" (1992)
- Fantasy-Pastorale (1993)
- Folksong Prelude on "Sweet Nightingale" (1993)
- Fantasy-Variations on "Jenny Jones" (1993)
- Prelude on "My Lord of Carnarvon's Jig" (1993)
- Fandango (1993)
- Concerto Grosso II (1994)
- Eulogy for Ira Schroeder (1994)
- Dialogues (1994)
- Giulianiana: Variations on a Theme by Mauro Giuliani (1994)
- A Little Suite (1994)
See also
- John Courter
- Émilien Allard
