What’s available here is this virtual organ that has a pedal board and two manual keyboards. It’s played on the computer keyboard, touch screen or mouse. On the latter three options you are able to tap and hold keys as though they were on keyboard itself. If you want a faster performing option than use the computer keyboard.
It is fully polyphonic, which means you can play bass lines with your feet while holding complex chords on the keyboards. This is exactly what you would expect from a church or Hammond organ. As with the more conventional version of the console, the keyboard follow a traditional layout. The top section, called the Swell, is played from C4, C6. On the bottom row, all the white notes is triggered from the A-K keys. Moving up to the next row, keys U, T, Y, E, and W control black notes.
How to Play the Virtual Organ
Below the console, there are chord pads where you can select from a full set of triads. These chords is held for you so you can concentrate on playing melody or bass without thinking too much about fingerings. This section of the virtual organ covers the notes from C2 to C3 and is played using the pedalboard at the bottom. On your computer keyboard the pedal notes correspond to the following letters; Z through M then comma key.
Using this configuration allow you to easily create a walking bass line or hold a low C whilst playing chordal music on the top manual. To generate glissando effects use the mouse by simply clicking and dragging it over the keys. Mobile device support include multi-touch that allows you to play a chord with one finger while pressing a bass note with another.
The main character of the organ is its ability to change tone, and the tone is controlled by the five drawbar sliders that determines the harmonic blend. They relate to varying lengths of pipes from the dark rumbling 16-foot sub-octave right through to the cutting high tones of the 2-foot super-octave. The drawbars affect the timbre in real time so if you hold a note you can morph the tone as it plays and hear the change of harmonics immediately. At the top there are preset buttons with classic registrations such as Reedy, Flute, Jazz and Gospel. Each of these presets will set the drawbars to a familiar setting but when you slide one of the drawbars the control pass back into your hands.
Below the console is two effects buttons; one for the Rotary button that cycles through the Leslie speaker simulation. There are off, slow, and fast settings. The slow setting provides a gentle chorale swirl, while fast adds a fairground-style tremolo. You can switch this mid-chord and hear how the speaker spins up. The second effects button is labeled Percussion which add an attack ping to the Swell manual only. This imitates the sharp sound of a B3 organ. You can leave it off when you want smoother sounds, or turn it on to include some rhythmic accompaniment.
In the lower right hand corner there is a slider that controls volume. This needs to be set prior to use as you don’t want the sound too loud. This is the master gain which control how much comes out of the pedals and both manuals together. Each section has no individual volume control; you can only adjust it by combining the drawbars and dynamic performance.
You can experiment with the Jazz registration. It highlights the 8-foot and 16-foot bars and includes some practical tips to get the most out of the session. Select Percussion on and set Rotary to slow. While holding down an Am chord pad, move the pedal notes from Z to the comma. Next flip the Rotary switch to fast for a dramatic climax.
The full-screen button expands the keyboard making it easier to navigate on smaller screens too. A quick reference guide to the key mappings is available if you press the help button or the question mark key. Begin by experimenting with the drawbars until you hear something you’re happy with. Mixing high and low harmonic levels together can sound great to give it a brighter or warmer tone. Practice runs on computer keyboard will help develop muscle memory too.
When you’re happy, introduce the percussion and rotary effects to bring rhythm and motion into the music. Dive in and have a go at developing your own registrations; the instrument is meant to be intuitive.
You should of tried it. Happy playing.