JEREMY WECHSLER Listen for Professor of German Studies Peter Frenzel as he serenades the campus playing the bells on top of South College.

Professor Rings in the School Year By Dan Clark Contributing Writer The South College bells, a mystery to most students, are in fact real. The ringing melodies heard each day during the noon hour are not from some random recording but instead from a real person sitting in a tower above South College, pounding on a direct action keyboard.

Peter Frenzel, professor of German studies, is the mystery man, and he has been playing the bells for less than a year. His first time playing was at the Commencement exercises for the class of 1998, when the only other possible bell-ringer was graduating senior Simon Strange.

Professor Frenzel performed at the Convocation for the class of 2002 on Friday. Several minutes before the start of the ceremony, in the little keyboard room atop South College, Professor Frenzel began to play. He launched into a peal, which is a series of quickly downward progressing notes. The entire room vibrated with the sound from the huge bells as he threw all of his strength into pounding on the peg-like wooden keys.

"It really wears you out, playing the bells," Frenzel said. "It’s hard on the fingers and the forearms."

He played on with the familiar tune of "Grandfather Clock," followed by the Wesleyan Fight Song, and the Wesleyan Alma Mater, humming along to each tune.

At the end of the last song, he hit the low C, the biggest of the 15 bells. Its deep tone reverberated audibly for almost a minute.

"The low C is a very loud bell," he said. "Every bell has its own idiosyncrasies."

When asked if he enjoys playing, Frenzel said, "It’s not my favorite musical instrument, but I’m fine to do it if no one else will."

The original 11 bells were set up in 1918 as a gift from the class of 1863. In 1966, four more bells were added to the set from a donation by former President Victor Butterfield, making the total 15.

The bells, made of copper alloy, sit atop the South College tower. Beneath the bell tower is the small room where the keyboard is located. To reach this room, one has to climb up to the third floor of South College, and then up a black metal spiral staircase.

Acting Director of the Office of Communications Services Drew Sanborn works on the third floor of South College, just below the bells. Despite this less than peaceful location, he says he has never been bothered by the sound while working.

"I think it’s fun," Sanborn said. "I like them."

Traditional college songs and peals are not the only tunes played on the bells. In the past, songs ranging from jazz to The Beatles to "The Muppet Show" theme song have been played.

Unfortunately, "not too many songs sound very good on the bells, because of the reverberation," Frenzel said.

Although he enjoys playing, Frenzel hopes to find a student volunteer with whom he can alternate bell-ringing duties.

"It’s not hard to play the bells," Frenzel said. "If you can play the piano, you can play the bells. It just takes a little practice."