THE PIPE ORGAN

The pipe organthe pipe organ

THE PIPE ORGAN

THE PIPE ORGAN

tHe PiPe OrGaN

The Pipe Organ(1)The Pipe Organ(1)

There are many types of pipe organs in this world:

•Church Organs•Chamber Organs•Theatre organs•Reed Organs

There are also electric organs:

•Chord Organ•Hammond Organs•Digital Organs•Other electric organs

We will be looking at church organs

Largest organ In the world:Wanamaker Organ

Fun Fact:

There are also Mechanical organs that play by themselves.

Have you ever wondered what the parts on a Pipe Organ Are…

The Pipe Organ- What Is It?(2)The Pipe Organ- What Is It?(2)

•The pipe organ is a musical instrument in which sound is produced by vibrations of pipes arranged in sets supplied with air from a bellow and controlled from a large complex musical keyboard.

•The grandest musical instrument in size and scope.

•Since it has a continuous supply of wind, it can sustain notes as long as a key is pressed onto. This is unlike most keyboard instruments.

•Its also has many components, unlike ordinary keyboard instruments. It is also the biggest and oldest among its family.

•The pipe organ has been around for quite some time, much longer than the piano.

•There are some reasons why some pipe organs sound different, be it grander, lower, louder and so on. This is due to the difference in pipes (flue pipes or reed pipes), changes in shape or use of pipes., change of material.

Fun Fact:

The pipe organ is one of the oldest musical instruments still in general use today.

One of the most well-known organ pieces …

The Pipe Organ-History(3)The Pipe Organ-History(3)

•The pipe organ was said to originate form water organs.

•The first water organ was the Hydraulis, invented in Egypt around the 3rd centaury BC.

•It was invented by a Greek, Ctesibius

•Despite these facts. No one knows how most musical instruments were "invented." 

ORIGIN…

DEVELOPMENT…

•Renaissance and Baroque Periods

Organ's tonal colours became more varied.Imitated various instrumentsOrgan building's "golden age” as virtually every important refinement was brought to a culminating art.

•Romantic Period

Organ became more symphonic, capable of creating a gradual crescendo.Began to be built in concert halls.More composers started using them for compositions.

•Modern Development

In the 19th century it was made possible to locate the console independently of the pipes, greatly expanding the possibilities in organ design. Also, stops were invented.In the 20th century, the Organ Reform movement took place. Also, electric organs were made.

Fun Fact:

Standard orchestral percussion instruments (drum, chimes, celesta, and harp)and more have been imitated in organ building.

Once Upon a time…

This Video Starts Late.

The Pipe Organ-Construction(5)The Pipe Organ-Construction(5)

ORGANS ARE MADE OUT OF MANY COMPONENTS…

C D E F O P R S T

Combination Action

Direct Electric Action

Electro-pneumatic action

Fipple Organ Console

Pedal Keyboard

Reed Pipe Stop Action Magnet

Tracker Action

Crescendo Pedal

Expression Pedal

Flue Pipe Organ Flue Pipe scaling

Tremulant

Organ Pipe Tubular- pneumatic action

Organ Stop

But the main ones are: Keyboards, Pipes and the Stops

Fun Fact:

Pipe organ wind pressures are roughly 0.1 psi.

The Pipe Organ-ConstructionThe Pipe Organ-Construction

•The pipes are arranged on a windchest. 

•For a given pipe to sound, the stop governing the pipe's rank must be engaged, and the key corresponding to its pitch must be depressed.

•Normally Comes in Metal and Wood. There are some rare materials like glass, porcelain, plastic, paper, Papier-mâché, sometimes stone. There is also a organ that has pipes made of bamboo in the Philippines.

•They also come in various shapes- cylindrical, conical, or rectangular. There are also irregular shapes like the Flûte triangulaire.Internal shape of the pipe is a major factor in tone colour. Cylindrical pipes are simple cylinders, conical pipes are in the shape of a expanding cone while rectangular pipes have a square or rectangular shape

•The end of the pipe opposite the reed or mouth may be either open or closed.

•A closed flue pipe with uniform cross-section sounds an octave lower than a similar open pipe of the same length.

•The tone of a stopped pipe tends to be gentler and sweeter than that of an open pipe, though this is largely at the discretion of the voicer.

•Moreover, they also come in various varieties.

Flue pipes- The sound of a flue pipe is produced with no moving parts, solely from the vibration of air, in the same manner as a recorder or a whistle.

Reed Pipe- The sound of a reed pipe is produced by a beating reed

Free reed pipe (Lingual pipe) - is an organ pipe that is sounded by a vibrating brass strip known as a reed.

Diaphone- Is a unique and uncommon organ pipe. Invented by Robert Hope-Jones around 1900, it has characteristics of both flue pipes and reed pipes. The pipe speaks through a resonator, much like a reed pipe, but a spring-loaded pallet instigates the vibration instead of a reed.

PIPES…

The Pipe Organ-ConstructionThe Pipe Organ-Construction

STOPS…

•It is a component that allows pressurised air to a set of organ pipes.

•The Organist can use the stops to allow air into chosen pipes and stop some air, thus the name.

•Can be use to control certain sounds.

•They also come in various designs such as slider chest, spring chest, cone valve chest and the pitman chest.

•The label on a stop shows the stop name and its pitch in feet, the octave of pitches the rank is natively tuned to and the tone quality of the rank.

•The octave sounded by a given pipe is inversely proportional to its length ("1/2 the length = double the pitch"), meaning that a 4' stop speaks exactly one octave higher than an 8' stop. 

•There are also special unpitched stops in some organs that make unique sounds.

Fun Fact:

When a organist pulls out all the stops on an organ, it is akin to a full choir singing together, with no soloists, a return to the most primitive form of the pipe organ and turning on all the faucets in your home at once.

Some Pipes in a Rank

The Pipe Organ-ConstructionThe Pipe Organ-Construction

•There are 2 types of keyboards

•One is played my hand (called the manual) while the other is played by the feet (called the pedalboard)

•At least 2 manuals.

•Each manual is named for a particular rank.

•The range of keyboard have changed over countries and over years.

KEYBOARDS…

Fun Fact:

Natural "pipe organ" formations can be found in some karst caves - they are eternally silent.

Ever wondered how this ‘beast’ is made…

The Pipe Organ- How is it Played?(6) The Pipe Organ- How is it Played?(6)

THE PIPE ORGAN IS THE MOST CHALLENGING INSTRUMENT TO PLAY. THIS IS DUE TO THE FACT THAT THEREARE MANY THINGS TO TAKE NOTE OF, ALL AT ONE TIME- THE MANUALS, THE PEDALBOARD, THE STOPS, THE CRESCENDO PEDAL AND MANY MORE. BUT, THERE ARE STILL WAYS TO LEARN AND PLAY.

1. Find a teacher. Normally, finding an instructor for a musical instrument isn't a problem.

2. Know the terms. If "flue," "swell" and "tremulant" mean nothing to you then do some homework. Any classes or instruction that you get will make a lot more sense if you are familiar with the terms that organists use.

3. Understand the mechanics. Not all pipe organs are the same. Design can vary greatly from the number of keyboards to the materials used to construct them.

4. Listen and learn. If possible, visit churches and cathedrals to listen to pipe organs being played. Listening to others will teach you many things about the methods and techniques for playing. Many organists will also be happy to talk to you with tips and advice on how to play.

5. Play for people. Many churches are having trouble finding musicians that know how to play. This way you can help people and practice.

6. Learning a piano will help.

7. You can get an intro level organ book.

8. Get some organ shoes, it will help you to learn the organ pedal technique. Fun Fact:

The Boardwalk organ holds a total of three Guinness World Records: largest pipe organ in the world, largest musical instrument, the loudest musical instrument ever constructed.

IN GENERAL…

Sound is produced by pressing a key which opens a valve below the pipes and lets the pressurized air travel upwards through the pipe. Once the key is released, the valve closes and the sound ceases.

Who says I can only make scary sounds?...

The Pipe Organ- Who Is famous for playing it? and When is it used?(7)The Pipe Organ- Who Is famous for playing it? and When is it used?(7)

GEORGE WRIGHT WAS ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS ORGANISTS •He was born in Orland, California on the 28th of August 1920•He died in Glendale, California on the 10th of May 1998 •He learned how to play the piano form his mother, a music teacher.

More facts about him : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Wright_(organist)

A ORGAN IS USED IN MANY PLACES•A Church organ is used in churches for prayers, solo or as an accompaniment to choirs.•A theatre/cinema organ is to accompany silent movies.

Fun Fact:

Do you know that Thomas Edison's lab contained a pipe organ which Edison would play for relaxation or for the entertainment of his associates.

Nature’s music to man-made items(this can be considered as a pipe organ)…

The Pipe Organ- Definitions(8) The Pipe Organ- Definitions(8)

•Keyboard 

Device consisting of a set of keys on a piano or organ or typewriter or typesetting machine or computer or the like

•Keyboard instrument 

A Musical Instrument that is played by means of a keyboard

•Organ pipe, pipe work, pipe, ranks 

The Flutes and Stops On A Pipe Organ

•Foot lever, foot pedal, treadle, pedal 

A Lever that is operated with the foot

•Clavier, piano keyboard, fingerboard 

The bank of keys on a musical instrument, called manuals in the case of a pipe organ

•Stop - (music)

A Knob on an organ that is pulled to change the sound quality from the organ pipes;

•Wind instrument

A musical instrument in which the sound is produced by an enclosed column of air that is moved by the breath.

•Fipple

•A fipple is a constricted mouthpiece common to many end-blown woodwind instruments, such as the recorder.

•Tremulant

•A tremulant is a device on a pipe organ which varies the wind supply.

•Pneumatic action

•A device built to control the delivery of wind to the organ pipes, be it tubular or electric.

•Tracker action

•Mechanical linkage between keys or pedals pressed by the organist and the valve that allows air to flow into pipe(s) of the corresponding note.

Fun Fact:

Organ building is very painstaking as every organ is built by hand only. Imagine building such a monster with only hands!