Prison Bells

One hundred and thirty years since the death of Christian Friedrich d’Elvert. “Two hundred and ninety years ago, rich people in a rich city cast the largest bell in the world. They spent two whole years decorating it to make it beautiful and majestic. However, the wooden structure in which the bell was installed suddenly caught fire. Useless and therefore criminal people were sent to put out the fire. They formed an endless chain and poured bucket after bucket from the mighty river. The fire subsided and the bell cracked. For a hundred years it lay in the hole with the corpses of those punished by the fire and therefore the bell destroyers. Then the rich finally came to their senses and donated the cracked bell to the needy so that they would have somewhere to live and something to eat. Since then, carillons have been built near prisons.” Program: Dmitri Kourliandski – fanfare for glockenspiel commissioned Dmitri Kourliandski – Lacrimosa (Anatomy Of Pain) Iannis Xenakis – A l`ile de Goree Eliška Cílková – commissioned for glockenspiel and BCO Alfred Schnittke – The End of St. Petersburg Brno Contemporary Orchestra, conducted by Pavel Šnajdr