Bells

Bells -- which might be defined as cup-shaped or spherical metal instruments that resound when struck -- have been used as musical instruments since prehistoric antiquity. Among contemporary recordings bells are common as members of percussion ensembles. The cowbell was a component of the classic 1960s and 1970s rock percussion battery, as anyone who grew up hearing the strains of "All Right Now" can attest. Bells occur frequently in African-derived genres, where variety of percussion timbre is an essential element of musical language. In the main European classical repertory bells were used in such orchestral showpieces as the 1812 Overture of Tchaikovsky and the Symphonie fantastique of Berlioz. Groups of bells alone have also given rise to musical traditions. The British practice of "change ringing," which dates back to the seventeenth century, encompasses numerical formulas of considerable complexity.

Percussion Instruments