Each morning, at precisely three minutes past 8, the sounds of "Delaware, My Delaware," the University's "Alma Mater," "America," and the UD "Fight! Song" waft across The Green, passing by the Georgian columns, above the brick walkways, greeting members of the campus community at the start of another day.
   The bell-like tones of the campus carillon are regularly heard at 8:03am, 12:03pm, and 5:03pm each day. Special musical selections are added for holidays and special occasions on campus.
   The campus carillon was born on May 16, 1959. At the dedication ceremony, the twenty surviving members of the Class of 1907 donated the carillon "in the hopes that the sound of these bells will warm the hearts and lift the thoughts of those who pass this way."
   The bell-like sound of the original carillon was produced by the physical striking of chimes in Memorial Hall. That early mechanism operated in the same fashion as a grandfather clock, and, at times, it also was played by a musician at a keyboard.
   With improvements in musical technology, the system was later upgraded to play pre-recorded tapes using a reel-to-reel recorder and, in the 1970s, it embraced the latest advances of the popular eight-track tape player.
   The eight-track tape system, with a few mechanical upgrades, was used for more than 20 years, until the latest update converted the carillon to a complete digital system in April 1996.
   The music may sound the same, but the production process is light-years away from the original percussive mechanism. Today, a modern instrumental synthesizer creates the bell-like tones.
   The melodies that have originated from the top of Memorial Hall for decades now reach far beyond the central campus buildings. As the campus has expanded, so, too, has the reach of the carillon, thanks to technological advances. Currently, there are five sites on campus where sound systems provide the sound of the carillon: Memorial Hall, Ewing Hall, Townsend Hall, Pencader Commons and the tower above Daugherty Hall.