Different strokes for different folks: types of organs
July 19th, 2010
As you can see in the post on organ music, organs are now used in a variety of different genres. However, not all organs are created equal, and some organs are better suited to certain sounds than others. This brief introduction will guide you through the three major types: the pipe organ, the reed organ, and the electronic organ.The pipe organ is the oldest variety. It is derived from the Greek hydraulis, a type of organ powered by either a natural water source or a pump which was created in the 3rd century B.C. Around the 6th or 7th century A.D., air bellows replaced the water pump. Other adaptations included the portable organ in the Middle Ages and the first permanent installation at Halberstadt in 1361, by which time the organ was able to create a variety of timbres.The reed organ originated in France in 1810, but was actually perfected by American manufacturers in the 1850s, when they adjusted the already-developed suction method of sound production. Rather than pipes, the instrument uses vibrating metal tongues, with air forced through by bellows. The Chinese had a similar instrument in ancient times. While the early 19th-century reed organs (called “melodeons”) were smaller than normal, larger versions known as “harmoniums” or “pump organs” were introduced in the latter half of the century.The electronic organ was obviously the last to be developed. The Hammond organ was the first true “electric” organ, developed in 1934, which recreated the sound of a traditional pipe organ with a set of spinning magnetic wheels. Later “electronic” organs moved even further away from the traditional pipe organ, recreating tone with oscillating circuits and resembling a piano in appearance. These instruments are what became most popular in rock and jazz music of the 1950s and later.