Pottstown's DellaPenna Celebrates 20 Years Of Bells

Frank DellaPenna always had interesting taste in music.

With the support of his mother Theresa and father Alfonso, Frank DellaPenna turned what was once just an eclectic passion for a very rare instrument into a popular performance across the country.

“My parents were great (when I was) growing up,” Frank DellePenna said between performances.

His folks weren’t sure how his love of the carillon -- a 4,000-pound instrument typically found in bell towers in Europe -- would play out.

"But that didn’t stop them from backing me 100 percent, even when I wanted to go to France," he said. "I have been very lucky with the support of the people in my life."

Frank DellaPenna performed across the U.S. and for Alice Cooper in the Phoenix “Christmas Pudding benefit.”

He dons the mask of a phoenix when he entertains fans of all ages in five shows a day at Musikfest in Bethlehem where he's performed for 13 years.

“He wears the mask of the phoenix to symbolize the phoenix, a mythical bird that rises from the ashes," said his wife of 37 years, Anne DellaPenna. “Frank gets such joy from playing for the people here every year, since it is the only place he performs locally."

The couple have lived in Pottstown for 20 years.

Frank DellePenna, who lived in France for two years while he trained and learned the craft of playing the carillon, got his start performing at Valley Forge National Park in the Washington Memorial Chapel.

“I had a burning desire to learn the proper way to play,” Frank  DellePenna said.

“France and Belgium are where the instrument originated," he said. "To be certain I did it justice, I dedicated myself to mastering the craft.” 

A carillon consists of 23 different size bells.

For the second of two carillons DellaPenna owns, he employed the expertise of engineer Ewald Stellrecht, who works at ESE Machines in Coatesville, to build the mammoth instrument.

“The bells themselves are made in Europe,” Frank DellaPenna said. “Ewald built everything else. What a masterful job ... I am so lucky to be able to do what I love every day."

Inspiration comes through people, not from people, Frank DellaPenna said.

"To have a chance to interact with kids and adults after a show gives me an indescribable joy," he said. "I am so blessed."

Musikfest in Bethlehem runs through Aug. 14. Learn more at www.fest.org.

For more on Frank DellaPenna, visit www.castinbronze.com