Bells have been used throughout the ages to accompany dance, to provide comfort and to warn of possible danger. The Chinese were the first to control the pitch or note of a bell, making it possible for them to play tunes. Soon bells were being used to accompany worship. On New Year"s Eve the bells in Buddhist temples are rung 108 times, once for each of the 108 worldly desires. In the East bells are often decorated with significant symbols. For centuries, tuned bells have been suspended in homes and temples to ward off evil and attract good luck and prosperity. Woodstock Temple Bells are inspired by these ancient bells and work in harmony with the wind to create a calm and meditative atmosphere. Our Temple Bells are not tuned to a musical scale but they are crafted with the same care as Woodstock Windchimes to ensure their beautiful tones. More than 30 years ago, the first Woodstock Chime was created by founder and owner Garry Kvistad from an aluminum lawn chair he found in a landfill. As a professional musician and instrument designer, he was fascinated by the Scales of Olympos, a 7th century pentatonic scale that can’t be played on a modern piano. Garry had the idea to cut and tune the lawn chair tubes to the exact frequency of the ancient scale. The resulting Chimes of Olympos was the first Woodstock Chime and is still one of our bestselling windchimes. Garry and his wife Diane founded Woodstock Percussion, Inc. in 1979 and it remains a family-owned business in New York’s Hudson Valley.