As Halloween nears, the haunting "Hedwig's Theme" from the Harry Potter films will ring out from a bell tower that looms over a darkened campus. It's not Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but Wellesley College, where students play the massive bells in Galen Stone Tower each week.
The Wellesley College Guild of Carillonneurs will open the tower to brave-hearted trick-or-treaters who can scale the spine-chilling stairs to the carillon, encountering skeletons, spiders, ghosts and cobwebs on the climb during the annual Haunted Tower Friday, Oct. 29, from 6-8 pm. Visitors should enter Green Hall from the academic quad, and follow the signs up to the tower. The event is free and open to the public.
"The Haunted Tower is very special because our bells have such a haunting quality to them, so playing Halloween music on the carillon is very fitting," said Wellesley College sophomore Carla Staffaroni, treasurer of the guild.
Find out what's happening in Wellesleyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Student carillonneurs will hand out treats and play spooky Halloween tunes, including "Transylvanian Lullaby" from Young Frankenstein, "Funeral March of a Marionette" and "Danse Macabre."
"We enjoy events like this that give us an opportunity to show off the tower and the instrument," said senior Lauren Baker, president of the Guild of Carillonneurs. "The carillon is one of the least understood instruments, and we're doing what we can to change that. Not many people realize that every time they hear the bells, there's actually someone in the tower playing."
Find out what's happening in Wellesleyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The carillon is the largest instrument in the world—and possibly the least recognized. There are fewer than 200 in North America. The Guild of Carillonneurs is one of the most active groups on campus, playing two to three concerts per week and performing for events such as commencement and baccalaureate ceremonies. While the massive bells evoke the pomp and circumstance of an ancient tradition, student carillonneurs often feature oddball tunes and personal favorites to keep the tradition current— and on Halloween, creepy.
