Tuesday 28 October 2025 5:00pm
CMS Computer Room
About
Abstract
The core of the seminar is a presentation and discussion on psycho-acoustic effects in bells. Scott will give an introduction on bells and how they are used as musical instruments. Bill will then explain a newly developed technique for visualising the complex modes of vibration in bells. He will then demonstrate how these modes of vibration give a strong sensation of pitch only loosely related to the modal frequencies (the so-called strike note paradox). The seminar will include a number of sound demonstrations intended to investigate modes of hearing, with discussion of who in the seminar experiences the various effects.
Biography
Dr Scott Allan Orr is an Associate Professor of Heritage and Environmental Risk at the UCL Institute for Sustainable Heritage. An engineer with broad interests, his research primarily uses data-driven approaches to further understanding and management of heritage, with a particular focus on the historic environment. He is also an active carillon performer, composer, and advocate, and is currently a member of the Executive Committee of the World Carillon Federation.
Dr Bill Hibbert has been researching the acoustics and history of church bells for many decades. His doctorate (achieved in 2008 while working full-time in the IT industry in an unrelated role) was on pitch perception in church bells. He has a library of over 13,000 bell recordings used for ongoing research. He has carried out many projects to investigate and correct tuning issues in church bells. Bill is a church bellringer and also an experienced choral musician.
Zoom link
https://zoom.us/j/99433440421?pwd=ZWxCQXFZclRtbjNXa0s2K1Q2REVPZz09 (Meeting ID: 994 3344 0421; Passcode: 714277)