What is Hauptwerk?

[@hansweichselbaum2534]

Excellent video! Deserves more views. Thanks for posting.

[@stevenwooddell]

Thanks so much!

[@Foto-PoesieUndMusik]

Organs, the queens of instruments. I love such fantastic organs. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for this interesting, wonderful video work ... Sincerely from Switzerland, your friend Hans-Peter

[@stevenwooddell]

Thank you so much for your kind words Hans-Peter! Alles gute von den USA!

[@Foto-PoesieUndMusik]

@@stevenwooddell 💖🙏

[@paulw8224]

Thank you Steven. A wonderfully informative and concise overview of Hauptwerk. I will certainly point others to this video, as I often get questions about virtual organs. By the way, I noticed that St Patrick's Cathedral Melbourne popped up at around 0:40. I've heard that organ many times. In fact, I first heard the Dupre Gm P&F played there in the late 1960s by Sergio de Pieri, who was the cathedral organist at the time. Best wishes for the New Year!

[@stevenwooddell]

Must have been amazing to hear that Dupre on that instrument- as great as the samples are hearing the real thing is still definitely better :) Thanks for the encouragement and wish you all the best over the holidays!

[@flamesniper126]

I love how clear the Dutch organs are

[@jerrymartin79]

Nice summary and introduction! Well done! 😊

[@stevenwooddell]

Thanks so much for watching!

[@brendinho1993]

Great video! What are the pieces at 5:10 and 5:42?

[@stevenwooddell]

Thanks so much! I think I was just trying to improvise something that fit the sound of those reeds.

[@Tom-Lahaye]

Good explanation, for me having a single midi keyboard, the choice for smaller organs would be the logic one. Smaller renaissance organs, or positive organs are examples which are often single manual and have no pedal stops, so perfect for a single keyboard. But does Hauptwerk do these small examples as well? for instance the Compenius organ from Frederiksburg in Denmark?

[@stevenwooddell]

Thanks for your kind words and great question! I’ve used a simple MIDI keyboard with the free set Friesach (which has clarity and personality and can be run on less than 8GB RAM) as a choir continuo. Just set manual 1 to the midi keyboard and then couple what you need. You can find the organ here: piotrgrabowski.pl/friesach/ Hope that helps!

[@EduardQualls]

@2:05 That organ, in the Grote- or Sint Laurenskerk in Rotterdam is actually Danish, built by Marcussen & Sons (installed 1973). Its core tonal nature is more North German/Germanic Baroque than specifically Dutch. However, with its multiple-rank principals [on all divisions], it goes beyond the style associated with that era & area of organ building (as shown in its makers' crediting study tours of France and Spain, and their experience in Linz; the organ also has one division under [completely non-Baroque] expression). The ponderous sound of the original organ can be heard on kzbin.info/www/bejne/jqiqdKKVYrCfn9k&ab_channel=PeterEilander, to compare with its sound per Hautpwerk samples. (Unfortunately, in the video, that first-heard [transept organ} is a bit out of tune, its mixtures, in particular.)

[@stevenwooddell]

Thanks so much for watching! I appreciate the clarification on the instrument and the link to the Gigout- which is a great way to hear the organ. What is your favorite example of quintessentially Dutch organ building?

[@profeluisegarcia]

Hauptwerk: the best gift in my adult live¡

[@stevenwooddell]

Definitely one of the best things to come out of the last two years for me :) Glad you have had a good experience with Hauptwerk as well!!

[@zoomzoom3950]

Great information. I'm in the process of putting together a four manual console, for now I have a 17 note MIDI pedalboard that I plan to replace with a 32 note AGO. I have each manual set to a specific MIDI channel. I'm still working my way through the product documentation, but I have a few unanswered questions: While I'm researching available four-manual sample sets, for sample sets that have less than four manuals, is it possible to map sounds to my "extra" manual(s)? That is, can I utilize 4 manuals with a sample set of a 2-manual organ? Also, I'll only have a stereo speaker system (one subwoofer and two speakers), and I know many sample sets are designed for 6+ speaker systems. Does Hauptwerk provide tools to map the 6+ audio outs down to two for stereo playback? Thanks.

[@stevenwooddell]

Thanks for your great questions! Manuals: In Hauptwerk’s auto detect settings there is an option to play multiple manuals on the same keyboard (you can map everything to one keyboard if you have to) depending on your sample set you might just be able to treat your fourth manual as a floating keyboard. When you are using the assignment settings I’m pretty sure it just asks you to confirm that you want to use (III and IV) on the same keyboard. The only time you really need to know your MIDI channel is if you are working with the keyboards in a DAW. The output is pretty flexible- Hauptwerk takes a look at the Interface or computer you are using and will give you those outputs as an option (as simple as L and R out- and you could daisy chain your sub) or it will offer the aux outputs from your interface I’m grateful they thought that through carefully. Hope that helps!

[@zoomzoom3950]

@@stevenwooddell great info! Thank you!

[@accousticdecay]

I play a venerable, well-built Allen organ at my small church, purchased after an old Hammond crashed the bearings. Allen is an excellent instrument, but have limitations, especially when installed in smaller churches with poor acoustical characteristics (i.e. dry); the samples are void of reverberation. The Allen I play has "Virtual Acoustics" but the effects can be unpleasant if set for a long, artificially generated acoustic decay in a "dry" room. My recordings prove that. On the other hand, Hauptwerk appears to have upped the ante by sampling the acoustics as well as the organ. Since the organ I play is MIDI-equipped, I could easily hybridize it with a Hauptwerk system, but the church folks would not likely have any appreciation for it.

[@stevenwooddell]

I love having the possibility of updating an older console with new samples! I've used Hauptwerk through an older Johannus organ that had audio inputs into it. The trick is bypassing the actual stops (you might need to work exclusively from pistons) I'd love to hear how things go if you wind up trying to use Hauptwerk for services.

[@accousticdecay]

Church has more organ than they need already. Any Haupwerk organ I ever build would be at home, and starting with an old 3-manual console and a tower computer that I'll build myself (I have built two). Old organs I see on ebay are overpriced.

[@stevenwooddell]

@@accousticdecay Good luck with your project- would love to hear how it turns out!

[@chrisrose6200]

I prefer the Dutch anytime. Clean, precise no muddled

[@stevenwooddell]

That blend of personality and clarity definitely keeps me coming back to that sample set.

[@mikbe2579]

For some clever minds, certain technical achievements simply come too late! I am sure that the good Johann Sebastian Bach would have been delighted with Hauptwerk, for SO he could have used his outstanding knowledge and genius to build HIS organ, tailored to his own needs, and at the same time to pursue further development.

[@stevenwooddell]

Great thought! It is fun to imagine what he would have done with a broader tonal palette at his disposal. At least it’s possible to play his music with plenty of color and clarity at home. Would have been fun to see what Bach would have done with a theater organ.

[@SemEilers]

its expensive, thats what it is

[@stevenwooddell]

But there are those free sample sets :)

[@SemEilers]

yeah there are those. still a great video thanks!