Beaumont Tower:
If you’ve done any walking on Michigan State’s campus, there’s no way you could miss the sound of Beaumont Tower’s beautiful bells. Winter, spring, summer or fall, there’s something very peaceful yet powerful about how this sound reverberates around Circle Drive.
There are signs surrounding the tower that tell the story of its history and significance, but for students and alumni its symbol and sound represent the splendor of campus. Graduation pictures are taken there, couples kiss there, students protest there, politicians politic there… but rarely do people think to capture the sound like they do a picture. It’s a memory… it’s an experience. When you see a picture of it, you recall the sound in your head.
The day I recorded the tower bells, I heard the usual sound of the bells tolling on the hour, but I was also treated to the sound of the bells playing MSU Shadows - the recording I’ve attached here. The wind was blowing through the trees, the sun was shining, and I thought, “If I could bottle this moment, everyone would want to come here.” Well, here’s my bottle… put a cork in it.
