It was established in 1987 by the Royal Carillon School "Jef Denyn" to supersede the smaller annual competitions held in Belgium.
[2] Named after Queen Fabiola of Belgium, the competition's original patron, it was modeled after the Queen Elizabeth Competition.
Its establishment was supported by the Flemish Government, Antwerp Province, and the city of Mechelen.
[3] The competition involves learning several pieces of carillon music across three musical styles: baroque, romantic, and contemporary.
[2][4] Considered the equivalent of top global competitions for piano,[2] it has been described as the most important carillon competition in the world[5][6] and the "Olympics of the carillon"[7][8][9] This music event–related article is a stub.