My wife got me this Chord Organ!

Download the basic Chord Organ sample library here: www.decentsamples.com/product...
Download the Chord Organ and Friends sample library here: / patron-exclusive-75450684
Support what I do on Patreon: / dhilowitz
Find my FILM & INSTRUMENTAL music here: davidhilowitz.bandcamp.com
Find my ROCK MUSIC here: manwomanchild.bandcamp.com

[@dinnerputter8757]

Daniel Johnston played one of these for his hit album Hi How Are You, this instrument is very special.

[@van4195]

your comment introduced me to this album and it's so beautiful. thank you.

[@dinnerputter8757]

@@van4195

[@BobbyGeneric145]

Amazing album. Chord Organ Blues is a great song too!

[@jakeasterisk]

oh shit i knew i had heard this somewhere

[@DMgrue1996]

WWOOAAAHHH! YOU JUST BLEW MY MIND!

[@ElvynBliss]

About a year ago I found a bontempi chord organ in the attic of the house I bought with my friends! It's just like yours but bigger! It's a fun toy and a fascinating mechanical instrument.. however I didn't have much use for it in my ambient setup since its basically accoustic. So I put it in our bathroom so people who sit on the toilet can play it. It's been there ever since. :) It's so hilarious to see you make a video about it :)

[@Skyverb]

Lol! Toilet tunes. Love the idea

[@l4chl4n47]

I’ve never heard a more fun idea for a bathroom than this haha lmao

[@trouaconti7812]

Bathroom reverb is the best

[@jackie5698]

Put a microphone in the bathroom set it up to record 24 7 go back a month later pick out all of the best toilet tracks and mix them adding drum and whatever else release a album called the 🚽 recordings

[@gavincurtis]

These Bontempi run on fan and can connect to exhaust duct I suppose with some mod? For a genuine musical interactive and active fart fan.

[@xLvGx]

It almost made cry when I heard this was the instrument of the wife of an older man, just thinking of the moments those two may have shared listening to her playing music it made my heart warm inside

[@k03hl3r]

And now a digital version of it can live on forever!

[@TomMathesonColes]

that almost made you cry? lol how sensitive are you

[@xLvGx]

@@TomMathesonColes are you fr

[@luxxesner]

@@TomMathesonColes imagine someone dying and you see someone crying then you say “how are you that sensitive?”

[@TomMathesonColes]

@@luxxesner not nearly the same thing, this is a random guy on the internet talking about buying an instrument

[@my2sons8791]

My very first instrument I ever played was a Magnus chord organ. This would have been around 1969. To my surprise, about 10 years ago, while moving my mom out of her home, I found the instrument up in an attic. The board on the underside needed replacing, but other than that, it still powered on and worked. I now have a room full of synths but my pride and joy is the little Magnus that started it all many years ago.

[@martywhiskersdoggity9392]

we had a magnus.... played it alot as a kid..... but the blower fan was obnoxious

[@AntonyBarnes]

I used to have one that was nearly identical when I was 7 or 8, which was over 40 years ago. The only differences were that the on/off switch was bigger/white, and across the top it had a fake wood panel. I wrote my first songs on it, that I can still remember now. The other thing I remember though was that it didn't like you pressing multiple notes at once. The sound went quieter the more keys you pressed, the fan couldn't push the air across all those reeds at the same time. Thank you for that trip down memory lane.

[@rasmusn.e.m1064]

It has taken me many of your videos to articulate this, but I absolutely love how the white, almost sterile*, background you use complements the instruments; Rather than making the items on display look sleek and futuristic, cold and efficient, it highlights how lifelike and almost organic these, let's be honest, pieces of mostly mass-produced assembly line products feel once they have been left to have a life. -Friendliness, I think you might call it. Their subtle browns, off-whites, and earthy reds and blues just feel that much more real when contrasted with the reflection of a ruthlessly efficient LED-light glaring off from a table that looks like it once heard a story about a coffee stain and dismissed it as a rumor. People often assume that aesthetics is a meaningless and superficial pursuit, but how else am I going to feel like I've just fallen in love with an old childhood friend from 20 years ago when all I'm staring at is a plastic box with little floppy brass rectangles and the buzzy pygmy cousin of the necessary evil that keeps me from heat stroke in the summer inside? *the wood grain is visible beneath the paint, an important detail.

[@frisuh1664]

You have such a fantastic way to put thoughts and feelings into words. These are precisely spot on! I felt warm and cozy reading it, thank you.

[@rasmusn.e.m1064]

@@frisuh1664 Thank you! I sometimes worry about being too wordy, but I'm happy that my feeling was shared with you successfully :')

[@metallsnubben]

I still maintain that the "My first Sony Cassette Recorder" I had as a kid was the best looking electronic device I've ever had

[@dinglepringle1380]

Nice, now let’s see Paul Allen’s background.

[@rasmusn.e.m1064]

@@dinglepringle1380 LOL. I don't even own an axe.

[@pcat-cduck800]

I love your videos, they make me feel nostalgic about things I haven’t heard of

[@____stu____]

I had one of these for my first ever keyboard, you’ve just given me a huge flashback to playing ‘La Cucaracha’ on my B11 at my school recital in the late 70’s! Thank you 😬

[@_OopsieDaisies]

I love chord organs! was (still am i suppose) a big neutral milk hotel fan as a teen so these always got snapped at thrift stores. love that due to age and wear each one ends up with its own unique voice, usually slightly out of tune. works especially well with the saturation from a 4 track and direct in guitar with the gain full on. great vid!!

[@MedlifeCrisis]

Aw, happy memories. I had a little Bontempi organ as a kid, more keys than this but no sliders. I dug it out years ago and my wife gave it a second life accompanying her singing Indian classical music like a harmonium. I hope I still have it somewhere…your video has sparked some nostalgia so I’ll try to find it!

[@mediumrabbit]

I’ve just bought a model on Facebook marketplace the same as yours, more keys, no slider! I’m a first year Uni student, so looking forwards to bugging my flatmates, is it loud? Unrelatedly, I love your KZbin channel, I am glad your interest spans every sort of organ.

[@wphmusic]

I had one of these as a kid (70s) and used to jam things between the keys and turn it on/off for a slow attack/decay creepy vibe. Haha Thank you for the sample instruments and the work that went into them. Also "friendliness" is a wonderful parameter name. 😊

[@tobydavidson957]

I absolutely love all these unique instruments you have! the way you modify these instruments to create a completely different instrument altogether is absolutely spellbinding. If you can get your hands on these, and you don't know of it already, I highly recommend checking out the Optigan, a vintage organ played from specialty records using a series of chord buttons and a small keyboard to improvise over the prebuilt melodies in the records. Also, The Yamaha QR10 music accompaniment player. Somewhat similar to the Omnichord yet without the strum pad. has some cute sounds and I'd love to see what you can do with them. As always, great job, and I look forward to seeing your next project.

[@howlinhobbit]

when the Optigan first came out my mother was hired by the Montgomery Wards in Jantzen Beach (just before you cross the Columbia River between Portland, OR and Vancouver, WA). one of the side benefits was she was given an Optigan to take home. I had a blast with it, mainly playing “Marianne” repeatedly.

[@kettenlaiho3983]

Personally, I would´ve sampled the fan noise too, and if possible add a fader on the vst to control the volume individually to keep the ''naturality' and vintage vibe to it. In some way just like many vst developpers have done before: they tend to allow the customer to control the machanical noises a piano generates, or the electric noise from the amp of an organ or a clavinet. Even tho, I think this is a great sound source and I'm sure everybody will appreaciate this! I love your content, btw. Keep it up!

[@alepouna]

Such a lovely sound. I love how you bring these instruments to life and create these samples for the world to enjoy and create beautiful music.

[@starsky101]

Yep I had one of these, played it for hours using the linen basket as a seat. The organ came with a plastic stand. Loved those chord buttons

[@thelanavishnuorchestra]

Love your videos and Decent Sampler. I will go grab this (and friends) for some winter vacation musical fun.

[@timdanyo898]

Successfully completing the circle sound of life from past to present. I love the way the effects brings a timelessness to this vintage instrument.

[@adamscott4406]

I was having a rough night when I found your channel. Your way of story telling and the calming nature of the sounds you create really cheered me up. Thank you❤

[@chinmitten]

I had seen one of these in a local gift shop about a month ago. I regret not getting it. So cool

[@andycordy5190]

Your imagination knows no bounds. You clearly relish a challenge and what you've made here is quite extraordinary. Thank you!

[@MishazBts]

wow ! the sound on this one is INCREDIBLE,it really reminds of an accordion ,i searched for something like this for a while ! appreciate it !

[@artzylogy]

Apart from the ingenuity, the video is so humane and touching (and not just the music, but everything about it)! Wish you lots of success, happiness and beautiful music in life! Thanks.

[@flatfingertuning727]

I suspect that the "electric organs" were an offshoot from kits to elecrify foot-pumped reed organs which had either dead bellows or lazy owners. The bellows of something like my 1885 parlor organ aren't exactly silent, but they're less noisy than typical fans. Electric reed organs probably used fans because they were cheaper than bellows, took less space, and required less maintenance.

[@nicolaserafini6590]

This was very very popular in Italy in the seventies and eighties for kids. My sister had one. The most popular model was orange and white (instead of grey and black of this one). That on switch popping and the fan spinning up instantly reminded me of being 6. The minor chords (the buttons on the left) were so spooky as a kid.

[@russellwaite5874]

mine was orange and black with creaky black plastic legs . I was about 15 in 1972 or 3 ish. Ps I've still got the motor and blower fan from it.

[@skymansion3957]

This makes me so happy. My Magnus chord organ was my first dive into unusual or older instruments, and it sounds so nostalgic and beautiful. Thank you for sharing these lovely sounds with the digital world.

[@Jeffro28227]

Gorgeous sounds. Thank you so much for the video and the samples. Just beautiful.

[@dusalejnikov]

one of my favorite channels, thank you so much!

[@jazzad]

I had one as a kid, a smaller model. I recently got exactly the same as yours except it's red. It came from a school sale. Very common in the 70'sq, it was used to guide choir singers.

[@RSpudieD]

That's really interesting and I like how simple it really is, especially with the fan being the only electric component. The sound is really nice and works well in your sample and the "with friends" version adds so much character to it. Plus, it just looks and sounds nice with the limited range and the vintage look. You did a good job "hiding" the fan noise by playing the sample, too. The fan doesn't sound too bad on video and might add to the feel of playing it for real. Very cool video as usual!

[@Frederick.SchumannMusic]

This is really amazing! Another great video! All these instruments are so cool and interesting. And I absolutely love all your sample libraries. They are so inspiring and I use many of these sounds a lot for my music. And thank you so much for the amount of free libraries!!

[@wordrc]

Oh! My grandma had one i used to play when i was younger, now it broke, but i'm really glad you made a video about this beautiful instrument!

[@feliamgamarra6130]

Man, Love your passion for the instrument, the compositions and sounds. Thank you for sharing!

[@-IVXII]

This is so cool, and I love what you’re doing with these vid/library projects

[@pablomenezzes]

Your videos are so inspiring, that makes wanna cry. Im in love with music, and so do you.

[@someshpanchal2091]

Your channel is ecstasy to me , there is so much joy i get when ever i got notification of your video.

[@trxsson]

you're literally my favorite youtube channel at the moment

[@KyleGrayYoung]

I love your stories. Thanks for making these videos! Cheers, David!

[@islandpalm148]

I learned Tarkus and Hoedown on my sister's Magnus chord organ back in the day. Then a Hammond Porta-B came along. Fans to tone wheels to synths, samplers, and digital clones. Quite a journey.

[@deanevangelista6359]

It’s a little know fake fact that Keith Emerson composed Tarkus on his Magnus organ when his C-3 was in the shop because of knife damage.

[@7hroomy]

Lovveee your channel you are so awesome for making these sample packs too! You're amazing!!!

[@bacnic]

My grandparents have a 49 keys version of this organ, I always found its sound atrocious, but seeing how it can be digitally transformed really fascinated me. Wow

[@JSB2500]

Atrocious. Yes, atrocious. Perfect. I was struggling to find the word. 🙂

[@rainymakesmusic]

I recently found a video about Decent Sampler and started installing a lot of your instruments through it, and I had no idea you made videos about them until youtube randomly recommended this! Love how interesting all of these are!

[@iamtoddmiller]

Wow, great memory! My sister had one of these, she never really used it, but I wrote a song called Traffic Jam when I was 17 and this came in handy for car horn sounds...hahahaha

[@NishanCW]

And my weekend is complete. Thank you for this amazing sounds.

[@ZyXonTube]

This is absolutely amazing of what you done here David, reminds me of what Alex Ball done with Melotron. Love these vintage instruments and the fact of guys like you or Alex making them available as digital plugin version is ever so much appreciated that all people from round the globe can enjoy sounds of such instruments which may have never ended up in that part of the world or are rare to come across otherwise. Thanks for the video David!

[@tomghzel]

Really cool, thanks for sampling it.

[@Mikalyn]

this is an amazing video - thanks for sharing and helping us understand this cool instrument

[@PraiseTracks]

Again, such a wonderful journey. I actually downloaded this las week as I was taken back to my own Chord Organ beginnings with a small brown Magnus chord organ that I played in church when I was around five years old 👼 I love that we can not only relive these beautiful memories of music times past but carry things further into our musical futures. Stay Joyful my friend!

[@milkywegian]

I really love how relaxing these videos are.

[@matzer8846]

Very cool little instrument ... thanks a lot for sharing and the download 🤗

[@emulatorretro]

My mom had one similar that was made of wood and stood on 4 legs and it had plunger "buttons" instead of actual keyboard buttons. It is what I first learned to play on. Loved that old beast. I think its fan was quieter though.

[@xxcobxxtoffelk1620]

What a beautiful story. Impressive work

[@samrussell4874]

Lovely video. Really enjoyed this.

[@BeatBoyStill]

One of the best KZbin music channels, I appreciate how you put in a lot of effort and are still willing to give away to people who couldn't afford it otherwise, thank you David, I'm sure you will be repaid. You're the only youtuber I will consider turning on notifications for.

[@gerson3035]

I don't know how I got to this channel, but it has been one of the best yt recommendations in years, personally I gave up on this music thing a long time ago, but I really enjoy each of your videos and the way you edit them.

[@therealsnufkin]

The reedy simplicity of this organ reminds me of the Harmonium, which in turn reminds me of the iconic Ivor Cutler.

[@calmmusicforsleep]

Awesome review, great sound! Thanks for sharing! Have a great day!

[@deszczak]

You are amazing. I love your work!

[@WakeMikey]

Another great video, fantastic content. Thanks!

[@rallewarmbier7607]

good work! I have one too. love the tone... and the noise

[@cellokid5104]

Your videos make me feel so amazingly comfy

[@Voodoo66Chile]

Really cool video! I have the same exact Chord Organ that I found in a thrift store. My son and I have had so much fun with it and love just improvising.

[@redrumthebum]

youre a godsend, david, this is incredible!

[@pariaheep]

I learn so much with your vids... KUDOS! Great channel👍❤💯

[@CraigRodmellMusic]

This was wonderful!

[@jeffrey322]

I had one when I was 9 years old and used to play along with songs on the radio!

[@danielbarry5547]

Man this was dope, gonna definitely check out your sample libraries to!

[@Normansongs]

one of my favorite instruments as a young musician. Reminds me of early indie rock exploration.

[@billcosgrave6232]

Love this channel!

[@ethansroka]

I just found your channel, AND I LOVE IT! Thank you for sharing with us :)

[@philmarsh5593]

No question sampling this has improved it somewhat! :) I am from your parents' generation and Bontempi were known for "as cheap as you can possibly get". "That's rather Bontempi" could also be used as an insult when your fellow synth player in your band came up with a really awful sound... 😆. As a kid, my parents acquired an old Lorenzo organ usng the same tech - the fan was even louder but it was from the 50s/60s. Plywood body, fake gold trim and it had 4 legs! A period beauty. I wish I still had it. But it sounded horrible. I never could love that sound - but you at least with the sampling have made it a little more expressive and subtle. Happy to be a patreon and no doubt will grab these and take a trip down memory lane. I do love that you find use and beauty (and demonstrate that) in things I wouldn't go near.

[@LurkingCrassZero]

I used to have a bright orange chord organ when i was a kid. Loved it.

[@del6921]

seeing videos like this make me want to learn music just to appreciate it even more

[@davepayne164]

I had one of these as a kid. Probably the first instrument I ever owned. Not the last. Lovely vid.

[@ftlbaby]

David, this is amazing incredible fantastic WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWWOW

[@nuraghage]

Me and my bro had one once we were child in the '80's. What memories 😢

[@michaelsucksatstuff6422]

Happy bday man!

[@thefeelcompany]

Another gem of a post!

[@paulschatz479]

Just recently discovered your channel! I love content you create! I always love seeing cool vintage instruments, if I had the space I would love to have a collection like yours!!! Super fun stuff!

[@ziazeitgeist3773]

We had one as a kid ~ great video :) It was such an oddity!

[@Twinkiepower420]

My grandparents had one of these in their basement when I was a kid! I just knew it as the little organ and I loved it so much. I asked my dad about it years after they both died and he just said it was gone, thrown away, and I never really figured out what it was. I kind of assumed it was just a small keyboard from back when electric keyboards were newer. Very awesome to finally know what it was! I’m gonna try and get one ASAP. I can’t hear these without thinking of my grandparent’s basement ❤❤❤

[@zachlafleur6651]

Your Bontempi Chord Organ was the exact same one that I got for Christmas back in 1982 when I was eight years old. This model is the B4 and I had mine until I was in my early twenties.

[@MisterRorschach90]

That is the most beautiful organ I’ve ever seen.

[@coyoteisland4610]

im new here and i absolutely love your videos. perfect spliff material I'm learning a lot and having a blast. bout to try out a sample download right now god bless u sir

[@Dodgelovesyou]

The most relaxing channel to watch

[@nomannic1]

2:37 Just wait till he hears about Noctua fans... quietest thing the the 21st century. Great video!!

[@Raxerm]

Big props to your wife. Genius gift.

[@IanWaugh]

Hey David - This took me back. A Bontempi was my first keyboard instrument. It looked more dated than yours but had more chord buttons. I started teaching myself to read music with it then moved on to the piano. A while later I discovered synths... 😄

[@RenePatrique]

This was my very first Organ, bought this 38 years ago. - I still own it, and it is ORANGE. - I love it! - :)

[@thecasiowizard]

My parents got a Bontempi organ back in the 70s. It was an awesome machine, though I wish I could have mastered it when I was a child. My late maternal grandmother would play it quite a bit. The organ lasted until 2004.

[@wellzarak4382]

Thanks to you wife, we have a nostalgic beautiful instrument like this. Thanks so much David for sampling that and give it for free

[@MusicalWizardryMarcoIannello]

I am so happy to see that my Hohner Liliput sample library is getting so many similar friends ❤

[@sbMaine1881]

Thank you for this. I have a very similar one I got cheap years ago. Im excited to try to basic one so I can run it out into my own peddles like the mood to see what I can do with it.

[@niels__vdb]

Your storytelling is always a pleasure to listen to/watch!

[@G.Man-]

He'd make a great podcaster

[@niels__vdb]

@@G.Man- He would:)

[@p1mason]

I remember discovering one of these when I was about ten years old, hiding in the back of my churches attic. It was covered in cobwebs, behind a dozen spare pews and underneath the folded up backdrop from a Christmas pageant that was already a distant memory by the time I was peering under it in the 80s. Needless to say, the first thing I did was find a long extension lead to get it plugged in. It was so much fun to play, especially the chord section which was tinny and discordant and full of diminished and dominant seventh chords. I thought it was so rock and roll. I destroyed more than one set of good clothes clambering through the attic filth to get to it. Thanks for the memory :)

[@bonerici]

Wow what a great instrument thanks for sharing

[@rulig0]

Great job!!! 😍

[@FoxRiverBridge]

I sampled the family zither last week and now I have an idea of how much WORK it takes. Great video!

[@TurtMusic]

I was NOT expecting to watch this video and see you showing off a melodica I got from my mother - which she got when she was still young! Exactly the same green instrument :D

[@Digithalis]

Amazing, just all your videos are great! :-)

[@hafid_music]

Love this. Best regards from me David 🙏🎶