Carillon music for Jack Layton's Hill farewell
The carillon bells of the Parliament Hill Peace Tower played several pieces of music as Jack Layton's lying-in-state on Parliament Hill neared its end and during his procession from the Hill.
The carillon is a large, mechanical musical instrument usually housed in a bell tower, and is played by striking keys on a keyboard with the fists or mallets while using foot pedals, to ring small bells. The Peace Tower carillon is played about 200 days a year, noon to 12:15 p.m. on weekdays (noon to 1 p.m. in July and August). Dr. Andrea McCrady is the current Dominion Carillonneur.
Layton's family requested that Dominion March, composed by Layton's great-grandfather, Phillip Layton, be played twice, during the early program and again as he makes his final exit from the Hill.
According to Canadian Heritage, these are the songs that were played on the carillon on Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to noon ET:
- Fanfare for the Common Man, by Aaron Copland, arranged for carillon duet by Andrea McCrady (Andrea McCrady, primo, Jonathan Hebert, secondo)
- Hymn: St. Anne (O God, our help in ages past, our hope for years to come), arranged by Leen 't Hart
- Hymn: Michael (All my hope on God is founded), arranged by John Courter
- Song Without Words: Consolation, by Felix Mendelssohn, arranged by Don Cook
- Hymn: We Shall Overcome, arranged by Milford Myhre
- St. Louis Blues, by W. C. Handy, arranged by Randolph Philbrook & Sally Slade Warner
- Andante cantabile, carillon duet by Ronald Barnes (Andrea McCrady, primo, Jonathan Hebert, secondo)
- Dominion March, by Phillip Layton, arranged by Andrea McCrady
And at 2 p.m. ET, following a 15-gun salute, the carillon played:
- O Canada
- Imagine, John Lennon, arranged by Andrea McCrady
- Dominion March