The Bell Effect, also known colloquially as "bells", is a technique used in musical arrangement where single notes of a chord are played in sequence by different instruments which sustain their individual notes to allow the chord to be heard. It is, in effect, an arpeggio played by several instruments sequentially. This is also known as a "pyramid" or "cascade". In popular music an arrangement is a setting of a piece of music, which may have been composed by the arranger or by someone else. ... Various arpeggi as seen on a staff In music, an arpeggio (plural, arpeggi) is a spread chord played top-to-bottom or vice versa in sheet music, or rather the sounding of the tones of a chord in rapid succession rather than simultaneously. ...

The technique originated with Jazz big bands and is a staple of trad jazz. A good example can be heard in the introduction to "The Charleston" by The Temperance Seven. The bell effect is also claimed as an influence by Brian May of the rock band Queen, especially on the famous solo to "Killer Queen," 1:48-1:52. A better example, specifically imitative of trad jazz, is "Good Company" from the album A Night at the Opera. Jazz is an original American musical art form originating around the start of the 20th century in New Orleans, rooted in Western music technique and theory and marked by the profound cultural contributions of African Americans. ... Trad jazz, short for traditional jazz is a music genre popular in Britain and Australia from the 1940s onward through the 1950s and which still has enthusiasts today. ... Brian Harold May CBE (Born July 19, 1947) is the guitarist for the English rock band Queen. ... Rock and roll (also spelled Rock n Roll, especially in its first decade), also called rock, is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles. ... Queen are an English rock band formed by Freddie Mercury, Brian May, and Roger Taylor in London, England in 1970 from the remains of Smile, with John Deacon completing the lineup the following year. ... Killer Queen is a song by the English rock band Queen. ... A Night at the Opera is a rock album by British band Queen originally released in 1975. ...

Freddie Mercury, another Queen member (vocalist, pianist and chief songwriter) used this kind of effect with some frequence in his songs as well, including The March Of The Black Queen (written and recorded in 1973, released in 1974), Bring Back That Leroy Brown (1974), Bohemian Rhapsody (1975) and Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy (1976). Freddie Mercury (September 5, 1946 – November 24, 1991) was a rock musician, best known as the frontman and lead singer for the English rock band Queen. ... Bohemian Rhapsody is a song written by Freddie Mercury, originally recorded by the band Queen for their 1975 album A Night at the Opera. ...