Carillonneur Frank Steijns to Perform May 5th in Washington DC

 

Thanks to Motörhead: carillonneur Frank Steijns will play the carillon on May 5th at the National Cemetery in Washington DC

"De Limburger," by Ivar Hoekstra

Carillon player Frank Steijns. Photo by Arnaud Nilwik

Carillonneur Frank Steijns (52) will perform on May 5th in Washington DC on the restored Netherlands Carillon for a Freedom Concert. "It will sound over the National Cemetery where so many lay who fought for our freedom. John F. Kennedy notably is also buried there, and that I may play there is a great honor," says the Maastricht native.

What a few minutes of video on YouTube can lead to. As a little something extra, Steijns posted a video on a social platform last summer wherein he plays on the carillon in Weert Motörhead's metal classic "Ace of Spades." together with guitarist Jitse Zonneveld. The video went viral and the band Motörhead was so impressed that they sent Steijns and Zonneveld a Motörhead T-shirt as a thank you. "Because of that video, the Dutch embassy in Washington came to me and invited me to play the carillon on May 5. They saw that clip and thought: Him, we must have! Then you realize how large a scope YouTube has."

Queen Juliana

The carillon in Washington DC is not just a carillon, it was the national gift of the Netherlands to America as thanks for the liberation. " Given by Queen Juliana during her first state visit to America. Only the carillon never did sound good, because the bells were poured by three different Dutch bell foundries instead of one, which is much better for the homogeneity of the sound quality. It was another typical Dutch polder solution: to distribute the assignment fairly and equally. Now the bells have been restored by bell foundry Eijsbouts in Asten, the Netherlands and finally they sound like they should."

The May 5th concert will be dedicated to freedom. "I am playing the carillon together with my American colleague Edward Nasser and my wife Madieke Marjon, will sing two songs from "The Bells."  Text by Edgar Allan Poe, in a composition for song and carillon which I wrote on behalf of Yale University."

Metallica

At the special request of the Americans, Steijns will also play some modern music. "Since in the US the combination of carillon with modern music is not well known, but they are curious about that. The first part will mainly be music to honor the dead, but in addition to that I will also play works by Glenn Miller, and the Stars and Stripes Forever March, so also some modern music pieces. I still have to make that selection, but I'm thinking about, for example, "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica. Also because this would fit very well in terms of the program."

According to Steijns, bells have been a symbol of peace and freedom for centuries. "Because in times of war these large copper bells were often the first victims, they were confiscated and melted down to make weapons. When the bells rang again, you knew the war was over. The carillon used to be the radio of the people. Napoleon stripped it of its ecclesiastical ties and the government then determined what was to be played on it and by whom. That is still the case, as a carillonneur I am also a civil servant appointed by the government."

There's something magical about hearing the carillon resound all over the city, because the richness of those bells is enormous.

Frank Steijns, carilloneur

Good times, bad times

The bells are increasingly playing modern music. That started in the early nineties with the carillonneur of the Utrecht Cathedral who at one point let the tune of "Good Times, Bad Times" reverberate over the city. Now it is very common to use the carillon for special occasions. "The people love it, the reactions are purely positive. I think it has to do with the contrast: bells, hundreds of years old, which were already sounding when the barge was still passing through the Meuse and people transported themselves by horse and cart through the city, that, since now those bells now are playing pop classics, which fascinates people. And at the same time, there's something magical about hearing them sound throughout the city, because the range of those bells is enormous. It is the greatest musical instrument that exists and really of a different order than a violin or a flute."

Education

As city carillonneur of Maastricht, Weert and Heerlen and he is also a violinist in André Rieu's orchestra, so Steijns is a busy man. Aren't there any new carillon players who can take some of the pressure off his shoulders? "There are two places where you can learn the profession of carillonneur, one in Utrecht and the other in Mechelen, Belgium. But the problem is that you can't practice at home. For that you have to go to a place where there is a carillon, which is a big hindrance. I now do have a student myself, the Russian soprano Anna Emelyanova."

When Steijns on May 5th is the first to bring the restored Netherlands carillon back to life in Washington DC, he will undoubtedly think of Motörhead for a moment, because the rendition of their metal classic put him on the radar of the embassy in Washington DC. "While I didn't really know the band well, it was Jitse who was the real superfan. But I still have the Motörhead T-shirt in my wardrobe and there will probably be an opportunity that I can play "Ace of Spades" and then I will definitely put on that T-shirt!"

The freedom concert with carillonneur Frank Steijns will be streamed on May  5th via the site of the Dutch embassy in Washington.

Thanks to John for his translation

*Note, May 5th in the Netherlands is celebrated as Liberation Day in WWII