Make it ring.
The National Bell Festival is the annual New Year’s Day celebration in Washington, D.C. On the first day of the year, bells in towers across the nation ring out together and unite communities around listening parties, eclectic events, and special programming.
Restoring Washington’s sound canopy.
BellFest works throughout the year to restore bells and towers across D.C. to their former thundering glory. Sentinels in bronze, the bells toll a history of our nation: the jubilation of independence, the pain of war, the sacredness of community, and the resounding hope of tomorrow.
No man is an island.
English poet John Donne, writing in the 17th century, argued for the interconnectedness of all people when he penned that momentous line: no man is an island. His immortal poem reverberates through the centuries as an ode to community, togetherness, and collected potential. BellFest celebrates that same spirit today.
For Whom the Bell Tolls
No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
