Change ringing is very different from the way bells are rung in other countries. Some European countries such as Belgium and Holland favour ringing tunes on bells. Whereas in other counties such as France and Italy the bells are rung at random.
If you are unfamiliar with the difference between change ringing and random ringing, the two samples below use the synthesiser in the PC sound card to create bell like sounds. These files are less than 1 Kb ensuring a fast download.
English Change Ringing of Bells | Continental Random Ringing of Bells
Many people ask why Change Ringing is described as English Change Ringing. The simple answer is Change Ringing developed in the 1500's and spread through the Church of England Towers across England but to few other places, mainly former British colonies. The table below shows the current penetration of towers with bells hung for Change Ringing.
The number of towers in England clearly dominates the other countries in the British Isles and justifies the title English, rather than British Change Ringing.