Westminster Quarters

E206815

Westminster Quarters is the famous melodic clock chime sequence, best known for ringing from the clock tower housing Big Ben in London.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Westminster Quarters canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (45)

Predicate Object
instanceOf clock chime melody
musical sequence
alsoKnownAs Cambridge Quarters
associatedWith Great Bell
surface form: Big Ben

Elizabeth Tower
Palace of Westminster
auditoryIconOf British timekeeping tradition
basedOn four-note motif
composedOf four distinct musical phrases
culturalSignificance iconic sound associated with London
widely recognized timekeeping signal
distinguishedFrom hour strike sequence on Big Ben
famousFor association with the clock tower housing Big Ben
hasGlobalUse adopted by many clockmakers internationally
hasMusicalIntervalFeature prominent use of thirds and sixths
hasNameOrigin named after the Palace of Westminster
hasOriginPlace United Kingdom
hasPart first quarter chime phrase
full hour chime phrase
half hour chime phrase
three-quarter hour chime phrase
hasPerformanceMedium bell ringing mechanism
mechanical clock movement
hasRhythmicStructure repeating pattern every 15 minutes
hasTuneType chiming clock tune
inspiredBy musical traditions of English change ringing
melodicPattern sequence of changing permutations of four phrases
notableLocation Elizabeth Tower
surface form: Elizabeth Tower at the Palace of Westminster in London
perceivedAs melodic and solemn
playedOn tuned bells
playsFrequency every quarter hour on clocks that use it
recognizedAs standard quarter-hour chime pattern
soundCategory acoustic signal for timekeeping
timeFunction full sequence precedes striking of the hour
quarters indicate minutes past the hour
typicalKey E major
usedFor clock chimes
marking each quarter hour
usedIn church clocks
grandfather clocks
mantel clocks
public clocks worldwide
tower clocks
wall clocks
uses five bells at the Palace of Westminster

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Great Clock of Westminster chimes Westminster Quarters