I have been asked what it was like at N.C. State.
When I go back and read the inscriptions in my "Whirligig" yearbook, there are a lot of people wishing me well at Duke. Well, I didn't get the Angier B. Duke scholarship, and Duke was just too expensive otherwise, so I went instead to NC State, which being the public engineering college, was affordable. I soon found out that GHS was waay ahead of most other schools, and my freshman year was largely a repeat of courses I had already had in high school. I would sit in the front row of physics class and sleep, and still ace the quizzes. Once the professor realized what was up, he didn't bother me.
I majored in Electrical Engineering, with a communications option. That and power option were all they had available at the time. State was really behind the times, and it affected my progress somewhat. What I really wanted was electronics - transistors, integrated circuits, etc. It wasn't until my last semester that I got any of that. They didn't cover transistors until the last six weeks! I remember looking at the schematic of my stereo (a tube set), and being thrilled to understand what was actually going on. That enthusiasm evaporated when I saw the schematic for the color TV, which seemed as complicated as an alien space ship. But what I got for most of my time at State was a lot of machinery, which I didn't care anything about. There hasn't been a new motor or generator design since 1896, but we covered that, and how to design a coaxial cable for a full year, or in my case, a full three years. There were courses that were only taught once a year, and they were required before you could advance. And I failed them TWICE, I was so bored. So what should have been a 1962 graduation became a 1964 date. I know my parents were wondering when, and if, I was going to end the financial drain. I held various odd jobs during school, but they mostly just helped me meet extra expenses such as food and entertainment, not tuition, housing, or books. Fortunately, my father worked for the City of Greensboro Water & Sewer department during my fourth year, and got me a summer job updating their maps (my freshman drafting course came in handy). I was good at it, and they liked my work, so when fall came and it was time to go back to school, I asked if I could just continue working that semester (there were no required courses that semester anyway). My 3-month summer job turned into a 9-month stay, and the money I earned paid for the rest of my college. The extra time I spent at State allowed me to take some fun (for me) courses, such as History of Mathematics, Astronomy & Astrophysics, Non-linear Partial Differential Equations, and Nuclear Physics (am I a geek or what?). These helped me boost my GPA somewhat in spite of the Fs I got in my major. I like to say I graduated in the top 2/3 of my class.
So what kept me going? Music. I was never stellar in high school, but for some reason I blossomed in college. If music occupations paid worth a darn, I would have switched majors and gone to UNC or ECU. I was in the Marching Band during football season (playing glockenspiel), Symphonic Band during concert season (playing flute), Varsity Men's Glee Club for years 2-5 (touring group), Collegiate Men's Glee Club for year 6 (no tours), Percussion Ensemble (tuned instruments such as xylophone & marimba), and played the bell tower every weekday at noon. Incidentally, the Collegiate Men's Glee Club was conducted by Milton Bliss, who by that time had left GHS in 1958, and Page in 1963 in Greensboro and had come to State, where he remained until his retirement. Bliss also conducted my church choir at First Lutheran in Greensboro, so I jokingly said I was leading the way for his next job. I joined Mu Beta Psi, the National Honorary Musical Fraternity, an association which would stay with me to the present time. While in school, I served in almost every official capacity, including National President. I introduced the amendment allowing women to join what had been an all-male institution (after all, "fraternity" means brotherhood). We decided to call female members "brothers", rather than trying to keep up with who's to be called "sister". I selected the name for our national publication "The Clef" (treble clef, bass clef... get it?). At the time, we only had two active chapters, at NCSU and Clemson, and Clemson was more active than State. After I graduated, I remained active, and became National Executive Secretary for 18 years. I managed to get more chapters, but unfortunately we were better at getting chapters than keeping them. We have, or have had, chapters at Duke, UNC-CH, Davidson, Wofford, Roanoke, St. Vincent's, Michigan Tech (my doing), Central Michigan, Washington & Lee (my doing), VMI, Rutgers, and I'm sure I've left out some. I still to this day engrave the membership certificates (not a big deal anymore - I use a laser printer, whereas I once used a hand Leroy set). I have an annual award named after me (I wasn't too sure about this - shouldn't I be dead for something like this?) See http://alumni.mubetapsi.org/resources.html.
A somewhat primitive version of the introduction to the Alma Mater was played by the clock on the hours between 8am and 9pm. The same tone bars were used by both the clock and the human player. The mechanism used by the clock to play the Alma Mater intro consisted of a rotating wheel with setter pegs on the outside of it. This looked a lot like the mechanical timers used to control electrical machinery. It had poor resolution, so such things as eighth notes were impossible. Here is an approximation of what the Alma Mater sounded like.
Sometimes I would arrive before the clock had started up to sound the noon hour, and I didn’t feel like waiting. I would turn on the tower, override the clock, play the hour strike myself, and then the tune I had selected for the day. I wonder if anyone ever noticed that the hour was struck early. Also, being an engineering student, my curiosity wouldn’t let me leave things alone. I took the covers off of the amplifiers, fine-tuned the volume towards the campus side, and even took the back off of the Maas-Rowe control cabinet to have a look in there. I’m glad I didn’t break anything.
MAAS-ROWE SYMPHONIC CARILLON
Since the carillon was apparently being used regularly for the first time since its installation, it was decided that it was time for an upgrade. I’m not sure who decided this (probably Mr. Barnes and J. Perry Watson), but in the first part of 1960, a new instrument from Maas-Rowe was installed. This new instrument consisted of two sets of bells, one set tuned with minor overtones just like real bells, and another tuned with major overtones. This arrangement allowed harmonies to be played that were not possible with the Schulmerich instrument (or real bells, for that matter). The range was also increased to 32 notes, enough for almost any piece to be played without losing musical intent. A keyselector wheel allowed the player to program in the key of the music being played, and the appropriate notes were automatically transferred from the top (major) keyboard down to the lower (minor) keyboard. By having both keyboards available, the performer could override the automatic selection when necessary. Below are pictures of me at the instrument in 1960, and a close-up of the keyselector wheel. 
When I go back and read the inscriptions in my "Whirligig" yearbook, there are a lot of people wishing me well at Duke. Well, I didn't get the Angier B. Duke scholarship, and Duke was just too expensive otherwise, so I went instead to NC State, which being the public engineering college, was affordable. I soon found out that GHS was waay ahead of most other schools, and my freshman year was largely a repeat of courses I had already had in high school. I would sit in the front row of physics class and sleep, and still ace the quizzes. Once the professor realized what was up, he didn't bother me.
I majored in Electrical Engineering, with a communications option. That and power option were all they had available at the time. State was really behind the times, and it affected my progress somewhat. What I really wanted was electronics - transistors, integrated circuits, etc. It wasn't until my last semester that I got any of that. They didn't cover transistors until the last six weeks! I remember looking at the schematic of my stereo (a tube set), and being thrilled to understand what was actually going on. That enthusiasm evaporated when I saw the schematic for the color TV, which seemed as complicated as an alien space ship. But what I got for most of my time at State was a lot of machinery, which I didn't care anything about. There hasn't been a new motor or generator design since 1896, but we covered that, and how to design a coaxial cable for a full year, or in my case, a full three years. There were courses that were only taught once a year, and they were required before you could advance. And I failed them TWICE, I was so bored. So what should have been a 1962 graduation became a 1964 date. I know my parents were wondering when, and if, I was going to end the financial drain. I held various odd jobs during school, but they mostly just helped me meet extra expenses such as food and entertainment, not tuition, housing, or books. Fortunately, my father worked for the City of Greensboro Water & Sewer department during my fourth year, and got me a summer job updating their maps (my freshman drafting course came in handy). I was good at it, and they liked my work, so when fall came and it was time to go back to school, I asked if I could just continue working that semester (there were no required courses that semester anyway). My 3-month summer job turned into a 9-month stay, and the money I earned paid for the rest of my college. The extra time I spent at State allowed me to take some fun (for me) courses, such as History of Mathematics, Astronomy & Astrophysics, Non-linear Partial Differential Equations, and Nuclear Physics (am I a geek or what?). These helped me boost my GPA somewhat in spite of the Fs I got in my major. I like to say I graduated in the top 2/3 of my class.
So what kept me going? Music. I was never stellar in high school, but for some reason I blossomed in college. If music occupations paid worth a darn, I would have switched majors and gone to UNC or ECU. I was in the Marching Band during football season (playing glockenspiel), Symphonic Band during concert season (playing flute), Varsity Men's Glee Club for years 2-5 (touring group), Collegiate Men's Glee Club for year 6 (no tours), Percussion Ensemble (tuned instruments such as xylophone & marimba), and played the bell tower every weekday at noon. Incidentally, the Collegiate Men's Glee Club was conducted by Milton Bliss, who by that time had left GHS in 1958, and Page in 1963 in Greensboro and had come to State, where he remained until his retirement. Bliss also conducted my church choir at First Lutheran in Greensboro, so I jokingly said I was leading the way for his next job. I joined Mu Beta Psi, the National Honorary Musical Fraternity, an association which would stay with me to the present time. While in school, I served in almost every official capacity, including National President. I introduced the amendment allowing women to join what had been an all-male institution (after all, "fraternity" means brotherhood). We decided to call female members "brothers", rather than trying to keep up with who's to be called "sister". I selected the name for our national publication "The Clef" (treble clef, bass clef... get it?). At the time, we only had two active chapters, at NCSU and Clemson, and Clemson was more active than State. After I graduated, I remained active, and became National Executive Secretary for 18 years. I managed to get more chapters, but unfortunately we were better at getting chapters than keeping them. We have, or have had, chapters at Duke, UNC-CH, Davidson, Wofford, Roanoke, St. Vincent's, Michigan Tech (my doing), Central Michigan, Washington & Lee (my doing), VMI, Rutgers, and I'm sure I've left out some. I still to this day engrave the membership certificates (not a big deal anymore - I use a laser printer, whereas I once used a hand Leroy set). I have an annual award named after me (I wasn't too sure about this - shouldn't I be dead for something like this?) See http://alumni.mubetapsi.org/resources.html.
One highlight at NCSU was serving as Campus Carillonneur. Here's more than you ever wanted to know about that.
SCHULMERICH CARILLONIC BELLS
When I first arrived at NCSU (then NC State College) in 1958, no one was playing the carillon regularly. I asked the Director of Music at that time, Robert A. Barnes, how one might come to play the instrument. I was in the band at that time, and had some keyboard experience from my piano teacher, and I thought I might be able to do the job. It turns out that the musical fraternity, Mu Beta Psi, was sponsoring an effort to familiarize the students, especially incoming freshmen, with the Alma Mater. To that end, Mr. Barnes asked me if I would play the Alma Mater each day at noon. It turns out that the timing was ideal. Band practice was held in the old Pullen Hall at 12:10pm, and I could get to the Chimes Room in the basement of Holladay Hall in time to play the Alma Mater just after the clock had struck noon. It was only about a three-minute walk from there to Pullen, so I was usually on time for band.
When the Mu Beta Psi drive ended, I asked Mr. Barnes if he wanted to me to continue, and he said he thought it would be a good idea. Veterans Day, November 11, was coming up, and I asked Mr. Barnes if it would be all right to play some additional patriotic music on that day, and he gave me permission to play whatever I wanted from then on, as long as I could still make it to band.
The instrument at that time was Schulmerich Carillonic Bells. The instrument had its inaugural recital on June 6, 1947 performed by Arthur Lynds Bigelow, Bellmaster at Princeton University, and consisted of a single-voice set of bells with a range of 25 notes. With such a limited range, some tunes required a little reworking or a key change to be performed. The small console had buttons which could be pushed to energize the amplifiers for just playback and/or practice in the Chimes Room, or to also turn on the power amplifiers for the tower speakers. The bell rods (semantra) were actually located in the small console, and if you bumped it, you could hear a faint echo effect as they all gently vibrated at once. There were two identical amplifier cabinets, free-standing in the room. There were preamps on top, with the main power being supplied by massive tubes, some glowing blue, on the bottom. When these were on, cooling fans also came on, and the room became quite noisy. Apparently the different amplifiers each supplied two of four quadrants of tower speakers, two quadrants aimed at the campus to the South and West, and the other two aimed at the Raleigh community on the North and East. It took 30 seconds for the power amps to warm up, so you couldn’t just switch them on and start playing. Here is what the console looked like, with me in the band uniform of 1958. Notice the control buttons on the right. The window on the right could be opened to hear the music coming from the tower, but there was over a one-second delay, which meant that the room speaker was really the only way to know what you were playing.
When I first arrived at NCSU (then NC State College) in 1958, no one was playing the carillon regularly. I asked the Director of Music at that time, Robert A. Barnes, how one might come to play the instrument. I was in the band at that time, and had some keyboard experience from my piano teacher, and I thought I might be able to do the job. It turns out that the musical fraternity, Mu Beta Psi, was sponsoring an effort to familiarize the students, especially incoming freshmen, with the Alma Mater. To that end, Mr. Barnes asked me if I would play the Alma Mater each day at noon. It turns out that the timing was ideal. Band practice was held in the old Pullen Hall at 12:10pm, and I could get to the Chimes Room in the basement of Holladay Hall in time to play the Alma Mater just after the clock had struck noon. It was only about a three-minute walk from there to Pullen, so I was usually on time for band.When the Mu Beta Psi drive ended, I asked Mr. Barnes if he wanted to me to continue, and he said he thought it would be a good idea. Veterans Day, November 11, was coming up, and I asked Mr. Barnes if it would be all right to play some additional patriotic music on that day, and he gave me permission to play whatever I wanted from then on, as long as I could still make it to band.
The instrument at that time was Schulmerich Carillonic Bells. The instrument had its inaugural recital on June 6, 1947 performed by Arthur Lynds Bigelow, Bellmaster at Princeton University, and consisted of a single-voice set of bells with a range of 25 notes. With such a limited range, some tunes required a little reworking or a key change to be performed. The small console had buttons which could be pushed to energize the amplifiers for just playback and/or practice in the Chimes Room, or to also turn on the power amplifiers for the tower speakers. The bell rods (semantra) were actually located in the small console, and if you bumped it, you could hear a faint echo effect as they all gently vibrated at once. There were two identical amplifier cabinets, free-standing in the room. There were preamps on top, with the main power being supplied by massive tubes, some glowing blue, on the bottom. When these were on, cooling fans also came on, and the room became quite noisy. Apparently the different amplifiers each supplied two of four quadrants of tower speakers, two quadrants aimed at the campus to the South and West, and the other two aimed at the Raleigh community on the North and East. It took 30 seconds for the power amps to warm up, so you couldn’t just switch them on and start playing. Here is what the console looked like, with me in the band uniform of 1958. Notice the control buttons on the right. The window on the right could be opened to hear the music coming from the tower, but there was over a one-second delay, which meant that the room speaker was really the only way to know what you were playing.
This instrument (and the electronic instruments which followed at State) produce their music by having small solenoids strike a bar of bell metal, technically known as semantra. This vibration is picked up and amplified over a million times before being broadcast by the tower speakers. See the next picture for a close-up of this mechanism. Schulmerich has now gone to a totally digital system, with no moving parts either in the tone generation or the automatic playback systems.
A somewhat primitive version of the introduction to the Alma Mater was played by the clock on the hours between 8am and 9pm. The same tone bars were used by both the clock and the human player. The mechanism used by the clock to play the Alma Mater intro consisted of a rotating wheel with setter pegs on the outside of it. This looked a lot like the mechanical timers used to control electrical machinery. It had poor resolution, so such things as eighth notes were impossible. Here is an approximation of what the Alma Mater sounded like.Sometimes I would arrive before the clock had started up to sound the noon hour, and I didn’t feel like waiting. I would turn on the tower, override the clock, play the hour strike myself, and then the tune I had selected for the day. I wonder if anyone ever noticed that the hour was struck early. Also, being an engineering student, my curiosity wouldn’t let me leave things alone. I took the covers off of the amplifiers, fine-tuned the volume towards the campus side, and even took the back off of the Maas-Rowe control cabinet to have a look in there. I’m glad I didn’t break anything.MAAS-ROWE SYMPHONIC CARILLON
Since the carillon was apparently being used regularly for the first time since its installation, it was decided that it was time for an upgrade. I’m not sure who decided this (probably Mr. Barnes and J. Perry Watson), but in the first part of 1960, a new instrument from Maas-Rowe was installed. This new instrument consisted of two sets of bells, one set tuned with minor overtones just like real bells, and another tuned with major overtones. This arrangement allowed harmonies to be played that were not possible with the Schulmerich instrument (or real bells, for that matter). The range was also increased to 32 notes, enough for almost any piece to be played without losing musical intent. A keyselector wheel allowed the player to program in the key of the music being played, and the appropriate notes were automatically transferred from the top (major) keyboard down to the lower (minor) keyboard. By having both keyboards available, the performer could override the automatic selection when necessary. Below are pictures of me at the instrument in 1960, and a close-up of the keyselector wheel.
The old amplifiers and tower speakers were retained, and while the Maas-Rowe installer was still there, I followed him on a trip up to the tower belfry when he checked out the speakers. A ladder was required to reach the trap door on the north side of the Shrine Room ceiling. A steel ladder on the interior wall of the tower led up to a concrete landing where the clock controlled the hands on all four clock faces of the tower. As I recall, there were no rails to keep one from stepping off of this landing in the wrong place, which would result in an almost 100 foot fall to the concrete ceiling of the Shrine Room. Another short ladder went up to the belfry floor. When the installer pushed up the trap door, a sizable amount of pigeon droppings fell on him. Each of the four speakers had four horns in it. The speakers are mounted on the floor of the belfry, and are just barely visible from the ground. This is appropriate, since there is little beauty in a speaker.
The tone bar cabinets were now fastened to a wall, and the clock used a separate set of tone bars, housed inside of a new control cabinet in a corner of the room. It used a large disc with protruding pins to touch contacts much like those on the bottom side of the keys on the keyboard. Since these could be placed anywhere on the disc, greater resolution was possible, but the tune could not be changed without ordering a new disc. The hour strike now consisted of the first and last phrases of the Alma Mater.
The tone bar cabinets were now fastened to a wall, and the clock used a separate set of tone bars, housed inside of a new control cabinet in a corner of the room. It used a large disc with protruding pins to touch contacts much like those on the bottom side of the keys on the keyboard. Since these could be placed anywhere on the disc, greater resolution was possible, but the tune could not be changed without ordering a new disc. The hour strike now consisted of the first and last phrases of the Alma Mater.
MAAS-ROWE GRAND SYMPHONY CARILLON
After 26 years, it was decided to replace the Maas-Rowe Symphonic Carillon with another from the same manufacturer, the Grand Symphony Carillon. With two keyboards and a span of 49 notes on each, it also has a greater choice of voices, much like a pipe organ. There is also a spinet pedalboard of thirteen notes for the left foot. Instead of a key selector wheel, the key signature of the music is entered using buttons under the top keyboard, much like the combination action pistons on a pipe organ console. Installed in 1986, this instrument has all of its tone bars installed on the wall. When I visited the campus shortly after its installation, I was invited by Mr. Watson to give it a try. Although I didn’t broadcast using the tower amps (which are new to this installation), I guess I can claim to be the only one to have played all three tower instruments. I was also able to videotape this. I had tried to audio tape the previous installations, but home audio at that time had severe wow and flutter problems, and I didn’t keep any of the recordings.
After 26 years, it was decided to replace the Maas-Rowe Symphonic Carillon with another from the same manufacturer, the Grand Symphony Carillon. With two keyboards and a span of 49 notes on each, it also has a greater choice of voices, much like a pipe organ. There is also a spinet pedalboard of thirteen notes for the left foot. Instead of a key selector wheel, the key signature of the music is entered using buttons under the top keyboard, much like the combination action pistons on a pipe organ console. Installed in 1986, this instrument has all of its tone bars installed on the wall. When I visited the campus shortly after its installation, I was invited by Mr. Watson to give it a try. Although I didn’t broadcast using the tower amps (which are new to this installation), I guess I can claim to be the only one to have played all three tower instruments. I was also able to videotape this. I had tried to audio tape the previous installations, but home audio at that time had severe wow and flutter problems, and I didn’t keep any of the recordings.
In addition to the voices available on the Symphonic Carillon, the Grand Symphony instrument has other voices as well, in an apparent attempt to compete with the Schulmerich Carillon Americana, which can have from 3 voices up to 18 voices at the mammoth instrument at Stone Mountain Park near Atlanta. Here are the voices on the Grand Symphony (I’m not sure of the pitches):
Neita and Carey H. Bostian Memorial Carillon
Maas-Rowe Grand Symphony Carillon, 1986
PEDAL – 13 notes
Flemish Bells 8’
Bourdon Bells 16’
Bourdon Bells 8’
UPPER – 49 notes
Flemish Bells 8’
Symphonic Carillon 8’
Minor Bells 4’
Harp Bells
Celeste Bells
LOWER – 49 notes
Flemish Bells
Major Bells
Minor Bells 4’
Harp Bells
Celeste Bells
TOTAL – 246 bells
13 key signature pistons
I understand the Alma Mater is now played automatically at 5pm, together with some other songs. I’m not sure about when or if the instrument is played by a person; you’ll have to check with the Music Department about that, although I understand that as of this writing in 2009, the console is in such disrepair as to be unusable. Since the Alma Mater is played by computer, the hour strike now uses the familiar Westminster chime.
Neita and Carey H. Bostian Memorial Carillon
Maas-Rowe Grand Symphony Carillon, 1986
PEDAL – 13 notes
Flemish Bells 8’
Bourdon Bells 16’
Bourdon Bells 8’
UPPER – 49 notes
Flemish Bells 8’
Symphonic Carillon 8’
Minor Bells 4’
Harp Bells
Celeste Bells
LOWER – 49 notes
Flemish Bells
Major Bells
Minor Bells 4’
Harp Bells
Celeste Bells
TOTAL – 246 bells
13 key signature pistons
I understand the Alma Mater is now played automatically at 5pm, together with some other songs. I’m not sure about when or if the instrument is played by a person; you’ll have to check with the Music Department about that, although I understand that as of this writing in 2009, the console is in such disrepair as to be unusable. Since the Alma Mater is played by computer, the hour strike now uses the familiar Westminster chime.
What was it like to play the carillon at State in the late 1950s and early 1960s? I have already described the normal routine, but there are some special events that are worth mentioning. Since NCSU was not a religious institution, I was allowed freedom to play almost anything I wanted to. But being a student, I didn’t have the finances to purchase much music. I found that the accompaniment parts to Glee Club music was usually too complicated for use on the bells, and band music was even worse, due to the melody shifting around between the instrumental sections. About that time, an LP came out called A Christmas Sound Spectacular, with John Klein playing the Schulmerich Carillon Americana. Again, I was not able to afford the album, but in those days, one could actually play the LP at the store before buying. I did so, and pulled a Mozart-memory stunt, returning to the campus to quickly write down what I had heard on the record. When it snowed, I would usually play snow-related tunes, such as Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow. One thing a carillonneur often wonders about is whether anyone is really listening to the tower music. I tested the limits of musical tolerance one day when I played The Darktown Strutter’s Ball at noon. The phones began to ring in the Music Department office, and the negative comments came rolling in. I was asked not to play that type of music again, but at least I knew that people were actually listening. When I attended one summer session, I decided to forego the usual noon recitals, and instead do Tuesday “Twilight Serenades”. I submitted my programs to the campus publicity office, and heard them announced on WPTF radio. There were actually people parking around the tower to listen. I found that 40 minutes was about the maximum time anyone wanted to stick around.
Perhaps the moment I will remember most vividly occurred after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. The daily noon recitals were suspended during the time of national grieving. Someone called the Music Department and suggested that we should toll the bells for him on the day of his funeral, which in Roman Catholic practice means striking the deepest bell slowly, once for every year the person was alive. That noon I was in the Chimes Room doing that, when I heard something outside the Holladay Hall window. Without any previous coordination between us, an honor guard from the Pershing Rifles was slowly marching toward the tower, playing their drums muffled in black cloth. It was all I could do to keep my composure until the tolling was finished. Another somber moment was when I learned from the Music Department about the death of Carroll Mann, an alumnus and professor who had been instrumental in the building of the Memorial Tower. He lived close enough to the campus that he could hear the bells. He had stated that he hoped he could hear the bells as he lay dying, and it turns out that I was playing them that day.
What happened after I left? I know that other students were engaged to play the carillons, and I have even corresponded with some of them. Even though the campus has over 30,000 students now, it is apparently difficult to secure the talent, and the present instrument is usually played by computer.
What’s in the future? As I complete this document, a graduate student (Matt Robbins) is working to replace the non-functional Grand Symphony Carillon with an instrument of 54 real bells. If this can be accomplished, it will end the cyclical nature of NCSU’s tower instruments, as carillons made of real bronze bells can last for centuries (although even they require maintenance). I only hope I can live long enough to see the effort come to fruition.
Perhaps the moment I will remember most vividly occurred after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. The daily noon recitals were suspended during the time of national grieving. Someone called the Music Department and suggested that we should toll the bells for him on the day of his funeral, which in Roman Catholic practice means striking the deepest bell slowly, once for every year the person was alive. That noon I was in the Chimes Room doing that, when I heard something outside the Holladay Hall window. Without any previous coordination between us, an honor guard from the Pershing Rifles was slowly marching toward the tower, playing their drums muffled in black cloth. It was all I could do to keep my composure until the tolling was finished. Another somber moment was when I learned from the Music Department about the death of Carroll Mann, an alumnus and professor who had been instrumental in the building of the Memorial Tower. He lived close enough to the campus that he could hear the bells. He had stated that he hoped he could hear the bells as he lay dying, and it turns out that I was playing them that day.
What happened after I left? I know that other students were engaged to play the carillons, and I have even corresponded with some of them. Even though the campus has over 30,000 students now, it is apparently difficult to secure the talent, and the present instrument is usually played by computer.
What’s in the future? As I complete this document, a graduate student (Matt Robbins) is working to replace the non-functional Grand Symphony Carillon with an instrument of 54 real bells. If this can be accomplished, it will end the cyclical nature of NCSU’s tower instruments, as carillons made of real bronze bells can last for centuries (although even they require maintenance). I only hope I can live long enough to see the effort come to fruition.
So what did I get out of State? A piece of paper. It opened doors for me in the industrial world, where I could learn the things State should have taught me, in much the same way State had taught many freshmen from schools in NC that were not as good as GHS.
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