Re: [tuning] Re: Piano Tuning Schools [organ split keys]

In a message dated 10/5/02 11:35:04 PM Central Daylight Time,
fndsnd@rcnchicago.com writes:

> When you use the word "digitals", are you using that as a synonym for
> "key" (the lever-thingy that is used to play the pitch???)?

I use digital the same as key. But they aren't part of the regular keyboard.
On my organ they are black & white small momentary pushbuttons from Mouser
Electronics in TX.

> It was arranged such that for every black key, there
> were two keys, and the spots with two adjacent white keys, there is an
> addition key.

On my organ the black split digitals are above the regular black keys. On the
theory they are used mostly for flat key signatures. So are easy to play
then. The seven extra white keys are in front of the regular keys, below them
slightly when the keyboard keys are depressed. That way one cne remove one's
fingers from the keys toward one's body, as is often done (such as changing
manuals), without striking the extra keys.

An extra white key between E-F and B-C lengthens the octave too much for most
people tor each well. I tried having an extra white key the black-key width
there, but that interferred with playing flat key signatures. I tried many
ways, and setteled on the above as the best and most practical layout.

My regular metal-plastic keyboards I bought from a pipe-organ supply firm,
Kimber-Allen, in Britain, when it had a distributor in the U. S. (The
Diapason magazine has ads from other organ-supply firms. Some will sell to
individuals, others to only the treade.)

The B/W switches I bought from Mouser. I attached the switches to Vector-or
Vector-type perforated boards from Digi-Key in MN with the terminals 90
degrees to the front. I used perforated copper bus strips from Digi-Key along
the front bottom edge for the plus voltage.

The back terminals have short copper strips to the back of the narrow boards,
to which wires are attched that go to key-signature switch boards havign 61
diode switches on them from Classic organs in AZ.

The wires from the key-signature switchboards go to the pitches on the tone
generaotrs. To get the right pitches to the right notes I had to interlace
the wires to the several tone generators.

Below manual one is a row of white digitals. Between manual one and two is a
row of black digitals. Behind and slightly above them is another
white-digital row. Between manuals two and three is the same as for manuals
one and two. Above manual three is another black-digital row.

These key rows were made solid and straight by fastening to strips of iron
used for wall shelving atop the black boards and between the black and white
boards. for the double rosws I used plastic electricalvtape as insulation
along the metal bar for the upper row..

I don't have any pix of my organ layout yet, as the organ isn't finished.

Sincerely,
Pauline W. Phillips, Moderator, <A HREF="/JohannusOrgansSchool ">Johannus Organs eSchool</A>
Johannus Orgelbouw, Holland, builds pipe, pipe-digital, digital-sampled
organs.
Moderator, <A HREF="/JustIntonationOrganSchool/">Just Intonation Organ eSchool</A>

> On my organ the black split digitals are above the regular black
keys. On the
> theory they are used mostly for flat key signatures. So are easy to
play
> then. The seven extra white keys are in front of the regular keys,
below them
> slightly when the keyboard keys are depressed. That way one cne
remove one's
> fingers from the keys toward one's body, as is often done (such as
changing
> manuals), without striking the extra keys.

I can't really imagine by your description what this is supposed to
look like, but it's very interesting. What is the tuning going to be?
19-equal? Meantone? Variable?

/Ö

In a message dated 10/6/02 11:16:56 PM Central Daylight Time,
oljare@hotmail.com writes:

> I can't really imagine by your description what this is supposed to
> look like, but it's very interesting. What is the tuning going to be?
> 19-equal? Meantone? Variable?
>
I posted the scale in another post. It's tuned to just temperament with 19
notes per octave. Two key signatures an augmented 4th apart share the same 12
split digitals, since two notes are identical.

Pauline