DEN HAAG - STJ : NETHERLANDS

*Location:

   St.Jakobstoren
   Grote Kerk
   Kerkplein / Rond de Grote Kerk
   (Torenstraat / Jan Hendrikstraat)
   Den Haag (The Hague, 's Gravenhage),
     Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
   LL: N 52.07744, E 4.30654
Site locator map
On the Google Map aerials, at maximum zoom, some of the bells can be seen in two sides of the lantern.
City locator maps and gazetteer page

*Carillonist:

   Gijsbert Kok, City Carillonneur
   E: g.kok22@ziggo.nl
*Past carillonist:
   1975-2011 Helena B. van der Weel
   1590-1975 [See nl.wikipedia.org]

*Contact:

   Stichting Carillon Den Haag
   Arentsburghlaan 60
   2275 TS  Voorburg
   (0)6 2952 3101
   - and -
   Stichting Grote Kerk
   *parcel:
     Rond de Grote Kerk 12
     2513 AM  's Gravenhage
   *postal:
     Postbus 555
     2501 CN  Den Haag
   T: 070/302 86 30   F: 070/361 74 86

*Schedule:

   Mon,Wed,Fri 1200-1300.  Quarters from
   drum made in 1689 & restored in 2008,
   daily 0815-2100.

*Remarks:

   Bourdon "Jhesus", cast 1541 by Jasper
   & Jan Moer (den Bosch), c.5800 kg, not
   originally part of carillon.
   Oldest carillon bells are by de Haze,
   except largest by C.Fremy, 1692.
   Taylor recast cracked A (36") and added
   19 trebles (C4-F#5).
   No longer used as a church;
   for cultural functions only.
   Bass B present, C# absent, though there
   is a dummy key for it on both pedal
   and manual; bass G pedal in A position.
   Four basses far below keyboard; some
   swing.
   Originally in meantone temperament;
   retuned to equal temperament
   by Taylor (not a success).
   Rehung on new frame in 2015-16.
   Original drum now in Museum Speelklok
   in Utrecht.

*Technical data:

   Traditional carillon of 51 bells
   Pitch of heaviest bell (excluding sub-bourdon) is G  in the bass octave
   Transposition is down 3 semitone(s)
   Keyboard range:     C C 48/(G )A#G   
   The arrangement of tones and/or semitones
     is non-standard; see Remarks above.
   The presence or absence of a practice console is unknown
   The instrument was enlarged in 1956
     with 30 bells made by Eijsbouts    
   Prior history:
     In 1937, some bells were recast or replaced
       with bells made by Taylor      
       (0 bells remain from that work.)
       Pitch of heaviest bell was E  in the middle octave
     In 1686, the instrument was begun with 37 bells
       by the maker cited in Remarks above
       (19 bells remain from that work.)
   Auxiliary mechanisms: M48S4 
   Tower details not available
   Year of latest technical information source is 2023
*Links:

The Dutch Wikipedia article about the building has photos of the tower and a long section about the carillon.
The English Wikipedia article about the building is much shorter, with only a brief (and somewhat confusing) description of the carillon.

Stock photo

Where the initial phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the de Haze bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.
Where the second phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Taylor bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.
Where the final phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Eijsbouts bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.

Ranking among all Netherlands traditional carillons by pitch (weight).
Ranking among all Netherlands traditional carillons by size (number of bells).
Ranking among all Netherlands traditional carillons by year of completion.

Where the bass bell of this carillon ranks among all great bells in Europe.

Index to all traditional carillons in Netherlands.

Index to all tower bell instruments in NL/Zuid-Holland.

*Status:
   This page was built from the database on  2-Nov-23
   based on textual data last updated on 2023/10/30
   and on technical data last updated on 2023/10/30
*Photos:

(none available)

Explanations of page format and keyboard range are available.

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