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Virtual Organ

Play a free virtual organ online. Dual-oscillator sawtooth + sub-bass synthesis reproduces the rich, full, sustained tone of a pipe organ.

Keyboard: A=C3 · S=D3 · D=E3 · F=F3 · G=G3 · H=A3 · J=B3 · K=C4
Ready to record

Captures live performance audio with zero latency. Export as .wav (DAWs & universal playback) or .webm (MPV player & web).

The Organ's Majestic Voice

The pipe organ is among the oldest, largest, and most complex musical instruments ever created — often called the king of instruments. It produces sound by forcing pressurized air through pipes of varying length, material, and construction, each producing a distinct pitch and timbre. Smaller organs have hundreds of pipes; the largest (like the Boardwalk Hall Auditorium Organ) have over 33,000. Our virtual organ uses dual-oscillator synthesis to capture the instrument's sustained, complex tone.

Pipe Organ vs Hammond Organ

These two instruments produce sound by completely different mechanisms. A pipe organ uses real pipes voiced with specific tonal colors (diapason, flute, string, reed stops). A Hammond organ uses electromagnetic tonewheels with drawbars to mix harmonics electronically. The Hammond became dominant in jazz, gospel, and rock because of its portability and versatility. Our virtual sound sits between the two — the rich harmonic content of a pipe organ with the playability of an electronic instrument.

Organ Repertoire

The organ's repertoire spans over 600 years. J.S. Bach's organ works define the Baroque era — the Toccata and Fugue in D minor is among the most famous pieces in all classical music. During the Romantic era, César Franck and Louis Vierne composed symphonic organ works that exploited the instrument's dynamic range. In the 20th century, Olivier Messiaen created a completely original harmonic language for organ. Jazz organ legends like Jimmy Smith, Jimmy McGriff, and Booker T. Jones brought the Hammond B-3 to popular music. Rock organists like Jon Lord (Deep Purple) pioneered the use of organ in heavy rock.

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Electric Piano
Harpsichord
Accordion

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to common questions about our virtual instruments, practice tools, and music theory workspace.

How does the virtual organ work?

Our virtual organ uses dual-oscillator synthesis: a sawtooth wave (rich in harmonics) layered with a sine sub-oscillator one octave below, reproducing the full, complex tone of a multi-rank pipe organ.

Press and hold for sustained sound with no natural decay — just like a real organ.

What is the difference between a pipe organ and a Hammond organ?

A pipe organ produces sound by forcing air through metal or wooden pipes of varying length and material — each pipe produces one pitch with distinct tonal color determined by its construction.

A Hammond organ uses electromagnetic tonewheels rotating near pickups to produce its sound, with drawbars mixing different harmonics. Our virtual synthesis models a pipe organ's full, sustained tone using layered sawtooth and sine oscillators.

How do drawbars work on an organ?

On a Hammond organ, drawbars are sliders that control the volume of individual harmonic partials (footages like 16′, 8′, 4′, 2⅔′, 2′, etc.

). Pulling a drawbar out adds that harmonic to the sound. The 8′ drawbar is the fundamental pitch; 16′ adds a sub-octave (deeper), 4′ adds an octave above (brighter). Our virtual organ uses a fixed combination of sawtooth plus a 16′ sub-bass sine wave for a rich, full organ timbre.

What keyboard keys play which notes?

A-S-D-F-G-H-J-K maps to C major (C3-C4).

W-E-T-Y-U covers chromatic sharps between. Keys sustain continuously — no fade-out — just like pressing organ keys.

Can I record what I play?

Yes — tap Record to begin capturing audio output.

Stop to finalize and save your recording as .webm.

What is the organ's range compared to other instruments?

The pipe organ has the widest range of any instrument — from sub-bass 16′ stops below 20 Hz to high-pitched mixtures above 8 kHz.

A full pipe organ can span 10 octaves. Our virtual version plays one octave at C3-C4, with the sub-oscillator providing rich low-end presence.

Which famous composers wrote for organ?

J.

S. Bach is the most famous organ composer — his Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, and many chorale preludes are cornerstones of the repertoire. Other major organ composers include César Franck, Olivier Messiaen (whose mystical works like L'Ascension push organ technique to its limits), Marcel Dupré, and Louis Vierne.

What music genres use the organ?

Organ music spans virtually every genre: classical (from Baroque to contemporary), liturgical/church music (its original home), jazz (Jimmy Smith pioneered the Hammond B-3 in organ trios), gospel (powerful, virtuosic organ playing in African-American church traditions), rock (Jon Lord of Deep Purple, Ray Manzarek of The Doors), and progressive/psychedelic music.

Why does organ sound sustain without fading?

Unlike a piano (where strings decay naturally) or a harpsichord (where strings are plucked and decay), an organ produces continuous sound as long as a key is held because air is constantly flowing through the pipes.

Release the key and the pipe stops sounding immediately — there is no decay phase. Our synthesis mimics this with a sustained gain envelope.