Netherlands Carillon

*Location:

   Netherlands Carillon Gardens
   (beside Arlington National Cemetery)
   Jefferson Davis Highway at U.S.Hwy.50
   Arlington, Virginia, USA
   LL: N 38.88819, W 77.06950

   West Potomac Park
   Washington, D.C., USA

Site locator map

*Carillonist:

   Edward M. Nassor   (C)
   4600 Demby Drive
   Fairfax, VA  22032-1707
   W: 202-537-6236
   E: ENassor@cathedral.org

*Contact:

   Cassie Anderson, South District
     Visitor Services Supervisor
   George Washington Memorial Parkway
   Turkey Run Park
   McLean, VA  22101
   T: 202-999-0079

*Schedule:

   May: Saturdays 2-4pm
   Jun-Aug: Saturdays 6-8pm
   Sep: Saturdays 2-4pm
   also summer holidays

*Remarks:

   Original bells were cast jointly and
   anonymously in 1952-3 by all three
   Dutch founders (van Bergen, Eijsbouts,
   Petit & Fritsen); treble C# omitted.
   Top 36 retuned during 1995 rebuilding.
   Tower closed to the public in 2010
   because of safety issues.
   All bells removed Oct.2019; reinstalled
   with added bass & 2 trebles in 2021,
   in renovated tower; rededicated on
   5 May 2022.  Practice console in staff
   building behind Arlington House, on
   cemetery grounds.

*Technical data:

   Traditional carillon of 53 bells
   Pitch of heaviest bell is G  in the bass octave
   Transposition is nil (concert pitch)
   Keyboard range:     G C   /    G C29 
   There is one missing bass semitone
   There is an identical practice console
   The instrument was enlarged in 2021
     with bells made by Eijsbouts   
   Prior history:
     In 1995, the instrument was enlarged to 50 bells
       by Eijsbouts   
       Transposition was down 3 semitone(s)
       Keyboard range was:     A#CD  /    A#C 25
       There were two missing bass semitones
     In 1960, the instrument was begun with 49 bells
       made by multiple founders - see Remarks above
       Keyboard range was:     G C 42/    A#G   
   Auxiliary mechanisms: E37Q  
   Tower details: 
     Height of console:                 27 meters above ground
     Height of lowest level of bells:   24 meters above ground
     Height of highest level of bells:  30 meters above ground
     Belfry openness:  99%
   Year of latest technical information source is 2023

News article (4 May 2020) on the casting of the three new bells; the expanded instrument is now scheduled to be rededicated in first half of 2021.

News article (18 Apr '20) on the current project to renovate and expand the carillon; with one photo of a new large bell being cleaned after removal from the casting mold.
News article (18 Apr '20), with a longer version of the same text but without any photos.
Large version of the photo of a new bell being cleaned.

Eijsbouts video (4:50) on the new bells for this carillon

News video (4 Mar 2019) on the forthcoming renovation of the carillon; the video is 2:20, but has extraneous material at the end.

Background article with two photos, clickable for larger versions

News article (Dec.2016) on fundraising efforts to restore the carillon

News article (Nov.2015) on the state of the carillon and its history

Another article (May 2016) on the need for repairs, with news video (2:58) plus a video of Ed Nassor playing the carillon (0:54)

The National Park Service page about the carillon has one small photo plus a history.  A more extensive previous version of the page may be archived.

A peace carillon page has photos and additional information.

Waymarking page, with 2 photos

The Historical Marker Data Base has pages with tower photos here (summer and winter) and here (with an aerial photo).

Stock telephoto of bells in the belfry; scroll down for photos of the tower in the garden at tulip time.

Dutch-language news article from June 1952, on the starting of this project at the Dutch foundries.

The initial phase of this work being a multi-founder effort, it is not indexed by foundry.
Where the second phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Eijsbouts bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.
Where the final phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Eijsbouts bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.

Ranking among all North American traditional carillons by weight.
Ranking among all North American traditional carillons by size (number of bells).
Ranking among all North American concert class carillons by year of completion.

Other concert carillons with similar keyboard ranges.

The bass bell of this carillon is among all great bells in North America.

Index to all traditional carillons in VA.

Index to all peace carillons worldwide.

Index to all tower bell instruments in VA.

   This page was built from the database on  4-Nov-23
   based on textual data last updated on 2023/08/18
   and on technical data last updated on 2023/06/22