[Magdalen] Toaster

[Simon Kershaw]

Similarly, when, some 6 or 7 years ago, our pipe organ needed major 
work, it was decided to replace it with a digital organ. This was almost 
entirely at the door of the vicar (then still fairly new in the parish), 
who before ordination was his parish's organist, so did know a thing or 
two about organs.

What we acquired was a Copeman Hart digital organ. There's a full proper 
console with three manuals, umpteen stops, full pedalboard and swell, 
etc. As well as a MIDI interface. The area which used to be full of 
organ pipes from 1890 to 1920, and subsequently empty apart from 
non-functioning facing pipes, is now full of speakers, a whole range of 
woofers and tweeters. It's certainly an organ that can make the building 
shake, and play those deep bass notes that reverberate through your 
body.

My understanding is that Copeman Hart specialize in synthesizing the 
sound of each pipe, rather than relying on samples of other organs. The 
result sounds pretty good to me, and I've not heard complaints from any 
organist who has actually heard it or played on it.

Copeman Hart have subsequently been acquired by Makin, so their current 
output may not be as good as ours.

https://www.copemanhart.co.uk/about

simon


On 2018-10-02 07:43, Roger Stokes via Magdalen wrote:
> On 02/10/2018 04:12, cantor03--- via Magdalen wrote:
>> After this recital, I agree with them.  I do not understand why the
>> electronic organ companies cannot exactly reproduce the pipe organ
>> sound.  The instrument in question is a large, 63 rank, three manual
>> instrument by the Allen Company, which is headquartered just down
>> the Turnpike at Allentown, Pennsylvania.
> 
> Twenty years ago my then parish decommissioned its pipe organ and
> installed an electronic one. The original organ was third hand having
> been originally built with two different types of action as an
> emergency replacement when Norwich Cathedral's organ was
> damaged/destroyed by fire. We didn't have much money; the organ needed
> extensive repairs and an electronic one (which would not need twice
> yearly tuning) cost about the same as the repairs would.
> 
> As Scott said using sampled tones is important, as is positioning of
> the speakers and balancing for the building. There will be a
> difference as the speakers will not vibrate as much air as is blown
> through pipes but you can get a good sound with care. There is a
> particular advantage where the church is not kept at a stable
> temperature in that regular tuning is not needed. Because a lot of the
> pipes are metal in a traditional organ they will go out of tune with
> changes in temperature.



-- 
Simon Kershaw
simon at kershaw.org.uk
St Ives, Cambridgeshire