The bell tower at Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales is revered enough as a place to perform that there have been only three carillonneurs in it's 83-year history. Now, there's a fourth.
In the entire 83-year history of Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, only three resident carillonneurs have performed in the bell tower. Number four is on the way. Geert D'hollander, carillonneur at the main cathedral in Antwerp, Belgium, was named as the newest inhabitant of the famed "Singing Tower."
I asked him why he thought he bested several of the best carillon players in the world.
"I think it's because I have bells in my blood", he said. "My father was a carillonneur. I grew up with it. I worked in towers since I could walk, three, four years old. Yeah, bells are just a thing in my life."
D'hollander performed his first recitals yesterday afternoon and is scheduled to play their Boktoberfest Plant Sale Saturday.