A carillon is a musical instrument made up of at least 23 large bells hung in a tower, all connected to a keyboard that a musician plays with their fists and feet. When you hear a beautiful melody ringing out across a town square or college campus from a tall tower, you're probably hearing a carillon.

The word comes from French and is pronounced “CARE-uh-lawn.” The musician who plays a carillon is called a carillonneur, and they sit at a special keyboard called a clavier where wooden keys are struck with the sides of closed hands while foot pedals control the largest, deepest bells. Playing a carillon takes real physical strength because you're essentially punching keys that pull wires connected to giant bells weighing hundreds or even thousands of pounds.

Carillons became popular in Belgium and the Netherlands in the 1600s, and many American universities and churches installed them in the 1900s. The University of California, Berkeley, has a famous carillon with 61 bells. Unlike recorded bell music or a single church bell ringing on the hour, a carillon can play complex songs, from classical pieces to popular tunes. The sound carries for miles, turning music into something an entire community can share.