American bell ringing expert hits Newcastle for tour finale

Jul 30 2009 by Dan Warburton, The Journal

NEW Yorker Tiffany Ng had a ding dong time as she put the tune in the Toon to give Newcastle a taste of the Big Apple.

American Tiffany, who studied in New York, crossed the Atlantic to send chimes echoing across the city as she performed at the Civic Centre’s carillon.

In a tiny room tucked at the top of a narrow staircase – more than 250ft above the ground – Tiffany performed a one-hour carillon recital.

With music ranging from Bach classics to John Courter’s contemporary sounds, Tiffany let the bells peel.

The 26-year-old – who is a world-renowned carillonneur and is now earning a PhD in musicology at the University of California, Berkeley – was in Newcastle to perform for the finale of her European tour.

She said: “Coming to Newcastle was the finale of a European tour that I have spent the last month doing.

“The bells here are really glorious, they are some of my favourite to play. I’m really passionate about new and contemporary music.

“It really is an honour to come here. There’s only a few carillons in England and that’s because the tradition is so important.