Wind chimes They have been around since prehistoric times, when rows of shells were hung from trees near homes. They were a crude form of home decoration that may well have been man’s first attempt to beautify his surroundings.
As we enter the spring season, many people will enhance their surroundings with the addition of wind chimes. However, many people are not familiar with the versatile uses, interesting history, or symbolic meaning that has made wind chimes such a popular and prized addition to garden and home décor.
How much do you know about wind chimes? Test your ringing skills by taking the true or false test below.
(Answers are provided below)
1. Although humans may like the sound of wind chimes, birds for the most part freak out.
2. In China, wind chimes are reserved for the purposes of holy temples.
3. According to the first folklore legends, a wind chime that hung from the door of a house brought good luck to the first person of the day that passed below them.
4. The supposedly “precision tuned” wind chimes are, in fact, regular chimes with tubular tubes rather than irregular shapes.
5. Both the diameter and length of the pipe affect the pitch of a wind chime.
6. The type of metal that sounds best when the striker hits the pipe is copper.
7. Certain tones produced by a wind chime are believed to have a healing effect.
8. Wind chimes can generally be purchased at a department store for less money than anywhere else.
9. One of the reasons wind chimes make a perfect Mother’s Day gift and a great anniversary gift is their symbolic meaning.
10. Although a popular improvement for garden decoration, the use of snowdrops is forbidden in the Bible.
11. The secret to producing the sweetest possible sound has to do with the point of contact between the hammer and the pipe.
12. “Feng Shui” is the chromatic scale used to enhance the rich tones of precisely tuned tubes.
Answers:
1. False – Birds and many other forms of wildlife enjoy hearing the soft tones of tuned chimes.
2. False: Many people in the East use wind chimes as part of their unique home decoration, either strictly for feng shui purposes or simply as decorative art.
3. False: They were hung in the doorway to keep evil spirits away and to protect themselves from bad omens.
4. False: Accurately tuned chimes are exactly what they say. It offers a blend of calming and relaxing notes instead of the sometimes irritating roar and clatter of normal types of bells.
5. True: Smaller diameter pipes produce a higher pitch than longer and / or larger diameter pipes.
6. False: High-quality aluminum produces a better sound in wind chimes; some aluminum tubes are treated to look like copper. But this is for decorative purposes only.
7. True: some shades have a healing effect; calm our mind, relieve stress, awaken our spirit and improve our level of concentration.
8. False: You can often buy wind chimes online, where ease of purchase and selection is best. Some of the best buys for quality, precision tuned chimes can also be found online.
9. True: They symbolize harmony and peace.
10. False: The Bible does not address the subject and there is no reason to avoid its use. The chimes are a beautiful enhancement of nature, and their “song” a celebration of the creation around us.
11. True: The “antinodes”, or contact points that vibrate the most to produce the sweetest sounds, are in the middle and at both ends of the pipe.
12. False: Timbre tubes sound better (in my opinion) when tuned to the pentatonic scale, the same scale used to tune the black keys on a piano. Feng shui is all about harmony and balance.
