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I have previously stated that I found the Hauptwerk web site by accident. I had earlier (in the late autumn of 2002) purchased a Yamaha DGX202 “Portable Grand” synth keyboard. I had some idea about “sampling” and next to no clue about MIDI.
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I turned to Google to enlighten myself. I discovered MIDI tutorials, Creative Sound Fonts like “Jeux” (Ah oui, français! I had a minor in French!), and a few other odds and ends. Jeux sounded nice, but I didn’t have a Creative sound card. I kept looking and finally happened upon “Hauptwerk” (Ach, Deutsch! I had studied German in high school, and it was Bach’s language too!). I investigated more and decided upon Hauptwerk as it was less hardware specific. |
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I downloaded the program; asked Martin Dyde (the software author) how to download the sample set for St. Anne’s, Moseley (near Birmingham in the U.K.); and set about getting it to work on my PC. (The St. Anne’s sample set was free, by the way. It was free even if you didn’t buy the program! The quality of the samples was excellent. The ambience of the church building was even there!) |
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I used the Yamaha as the MIDI device, and managed to make Hauptwerk work. The sound coming through the headphones was amazing. (Can you tell that I was in open-mouthed wonder at what Martin Dyde had made? I had to believe it because I was experiencing it! I was truly ecstatic!) |
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I used the program without registering it for awhile. I experimented with trying to use some of the free software that came with the keyboard. I know why they gave it away; it wasn't the most user friendly software around. I managed to latch onto a notation based program that allowed for MIDI output. NoteWorthy Composer was really reasonably priced and worked the way I worked—with musical notation. Another big plus was that the NoteWorthy Composer and Hauptwerk combination also allowed me to “play” works that were never in my technical grasp. |
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Now I had the basic building blocks to put together an organ that would allow me to experience the King of Instruments in my own home at a price I could easily afford. |
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I had decided on a three-manual and pedal instrument to allow for the greatest flexibility. I already had a pedalboard from an organ console I bought in 1969. (I never did use the console, but I refinished the pedals and used them as an objet d’art in my living room.) I started purchasing synth keyboards from eBay. |
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I had concluded that I should see if I could use an inexpensive keyboard as the MIDI encoder for the pedals. The circuit board in the picture is the interface board for the scan matrix with diodes. Yep, it’s my design. I learned that with the tremors in my right hand, I was absolutely no good at soldering anymore. And, no, I’m not going to show you the side with the solder on it; it’s embarrassing. The other picture shows the “butchered” Radio Shack keyboard. (The one real problem with the Radio Shack synth was that the On/Off was accomplished with a slider switch. Had I continued my kludgy plan, I would have had to use the slider switch each time I wanted to power the proposed pedalboard on.) The setup worked when I tested it. Since I had thrown away or lost the contact rail for the pedals long ago, I had the problem of what to use as key contacts. I wanted reed switches with magnetic actuation, but I was sure that a configuration like that would be pricey. |
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Then I found this advertisement on the OrganClassifieds site!
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Date: July 2, 2003
By: Aaa Aaaaaaa, St. Aaaaaaa's by-the-sea Episcopal
Aaaaaaaa, Calif, U.S.A.
760-###-####
Klann console in excellent condition. 3 manuals, 64 stop tabs, 8 generals, divisionals, and toe studs. Cabinet and pedals refinished in med walnut. New Peterson contacts and stop tabs. Intermidi keying system makes the console fully MIDI'd and ready to receive a sound module. to be removed in mid September from church in southern california. $1,500 or best offer
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And all of my plans began to change. . .
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