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Hereford Complete now released

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David Butcher

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Hereford Complete now released

PostWed Aug 22, 2012 4:44 pm

Hello all,

I'm very pleased to announce that the complete Hereford Cathedral sample set has now been released. As with the first two volumes, this final volume is now available for download, with details being provided within 24 hours of an order being received. The DVDs will follow very soon after and dispatch will certainly commence by Tuesday of next week at the latest.

Full details of pricing can be found on the Order page of the website and please note that the discounted upgrade pricing will be valid until the end of October. Regrettably, for all existing Hereford sets (as well as the other sets) the Euro prices have had to be increased slightly - this is purely as a result of the relative weakness of the Euro currency compared to a year ago. GB Pounds prices are unchanged.

I am thrilled that recitalist and English organ music afficionado Christoph Keller has contributed three wonderful recordings of the music of Percy Whitlock to the demos page - many thanks Christoph ! I'm grateful also to my beta testers who have fed back much very useful information.

There is an "XL" version of the sample set planned and work will start on this shortly. Amongst various modest enhancements (details on the website), this will increase the manual/pedal compass to 61/32 notes. Initially, I am planning that this version will apply to just the complete sample set - however, if this increased compass would still be of use for the 23 and 46 stop sets, let me know and I will see what can be done.

Finally I'd like to say thanks to everyone who has posted comments about the Hereford sample sets on the forum. Even if on occasion I've not managed to reply individually, rest assured that your input has always been appreciated and of great value.

Hope you enjoy this instrument - finally - with all its 67 stops available to play.
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marcus.reeves

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostWed Aug 22, 2012 4:50 pm

It would seem I've logged on at just the right time... my order has been placed. Very much looking forward to getting it downloaded and installed!

Thanks for all your hard work, David.
Best wishes,
Marcus
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IainStinson

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostWed Aug 22, 2012 6:08 pm

Congratulations. I look forward to playing the full instrument in the next few days. The Whitlock pieces are excellent. Thank you.
Iain
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kwbmusic

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostWed Aug 22, 2012 8:30 pm

I have to say I am impressed. Bought the Hereford Vol III this morning, within 1 1/2 hours I had received confirmation of purchase plus download links, dongle update request and then the dongle update file. Well done all I do not believe I have had such excellent service anywhere.
According to my iPhone it is late at night in Indianapolis and very early in the morning in England, even more impressive (as it is late morning here in Melbourne , Australia)!
Keith
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MJF

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostWed Aug 22, 2012 10:40 pm

Hi David
The proposed XL version will provide "separate draws for the 16 / 8 foot stops". For the low pressure group, is this intended simply to give a more convenient way of accessing what the complete version gives (ie. such that any other low pressure stops drawn concurrently will also play at suboctave pitch), or rather is it meant to provide a way of subverting this (so that other low pressure stops will retain their natural pitch unaffected)?
Rgds,
MJF
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icrutt

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostThu Aug 23, 2012 7:19 am

Great news and many congratulations! As Iain has already commented, the Whitlock recordings are very enjoyable.
I need to upgrade the RAM in my Mac before upgrading, but I don't think I'll be able to resist the appeal of the complete instrument for long... :)

Ian
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David Butcher

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostThu Aug 23, 2012 7:57 am

Thanks for the comments so far. I have now uploaded lossless Windows Media Audio versions of the Whitlock pieces which allow you to listen at 24 bit resolution with no data compression.

MJF wrote:The proposed XL version will provide "separate draws for the 16 / 8 foot stops". For the low pressure group, is this intended simply to give a more convenient way of accessing what the complete version gives (ie. such that any other low pressure stops drawn concurrently will also play at suboctave pitch), or rather is it meant to provide a way of subverting this (so that other low pressure stops will retain their natural pitch unaffected)?


Hi MJF
It's the latter. Initially, when playing the Hereford organ, I was surprised that the stops without an extra octave of pipes also dropped the octave. Of course, when I thought about it, with all these pipes on a single windchest, there was no way of avoiding this happening. However, with Hauptwerk, anything is possible (!), so I plan to give the Clarinet, Orchestral Oboe and Tromba two drawstops - one at 8 foot and one at 16 foot pitch, therefore allowing greater flexibiliy of combination on the Solo division. That then makes the separate HP and LP 16 foot controls redundant.
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pwhodges

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostThu Aug 23, 2012 1:26 pm

Very nice, thank you! It's a shame that I've got a really busy time from now until after the weekend, so I won't have much time to play it for a few days...

Paul
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telemanr

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostThu Aug 23, 2012 3:36 pm

I just loaded the organ but I haven't the energy to do anything much with it. I'm in the middle of a kidney stone episode. Kind of reduces desire to enjoy much.
Rob Enns
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marcus.reeves

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostThu Aug 23, 2012 3:43 pm

I've just spent a very pleasant three hours exploring the delights of Hereford Complete. What can I say other than, "wow"?

A few initial thoughts: it's not just the big stuff which is a useful addition, all of the quieter stops are delightful. Starting with the Swell: the 16' Contra Gamba really adds to the strings. Try it with the octave coupler and the box shut for a really rich string sound with the 32' Double Open Wood rumbling away. The Dulzian makes for a useful 16' solo stop (potentially useful coupled to the pedals for a solo too) but also makes a mini full swell possible, especially when combined with the 16' Contra Gamba and principal chorus up to mixture.

The Choir Dulciana and Claribel Flute are rich but not overpowering (when is a Dulciana ever overpowering?! It certainly adds a lovely edge though). These two, combined with the Open Diapason are rich and warm. The Claribel Flute makes for a nice alternative, with a slightly stronger tone, to the Lieblich, which I always found a bit edgy. I have to confess that I haven't yet explored the Choir mutations fully.

The 16'/8' Clarinet on the Solo is lovely. It's slightly stronger than the 8' Cor Anglais so it cuts through thicker accompaniments more easily. It's really rich in its bottom octave - I'm sure it'll be great fun in the XL version when it will be possible to create a kind of medieval consort sound with the Orchestral Oboe and Cor Anglais too. The 2' Hohl Flute creates a lovely baroque-y sound with the just the Harmonic Flute. The Glockenspiel is probably of limited use, but it's fun, nonetheless. And the 8' Tuba! I thought the Haverhill OIC tuba was good, but this is stunning, easily powering over the top of full Great and Swell. With the octave coupler (every tuba's best friend) it's awesome.

The Great Open Diapason No. 1 is really strong and provides a brilliant foundation. I should imagine that this leads a congregation easily. The 4' Principal No. 1 is also strong and bright, combining well with the OD No. 2 as well in Baroque repertoire. The new Mixture IV really crowns the principal chorus and the 16' Double Open Diapason underpins the chorus without muddying it. As for the Great reeds: they really crown the whole ensemble. The 4' Clarion is bright and sits on top, shimmering wonderfully.

The Pedal Mixture is useful in providing independence to this department but, of course, the 32' Bombarde, 16' Ophicleide and 4' Clarion are the most exciting additions. (The new 4' Open Flute also has uses in solo lines.) The 16' Ophicleide again provides a strong foundation to the pedal line while the 32' Bombarde provides excitement without overpowering the whole organ.

All in all, Hereford Complete is a very integrated, rich, colourful sample set. I purchased Metz a few months ago, and was impressed with the way in which each stop contributes to the ensemble. Hereford is similar: while every stop may not contribute to the overall ensemble, the choruses are unified and interesting, and together they make for a really stunning sound.

One small word of warning: even though the whole organ loads into 16Gb in 24-bit, on my MacMini, the sound is glitchy. At 20-bit, there are no problems whatsoever.

David: congratulations on the production of a wonderful sample set. It was well worth the wait. Thank you!
Best wishes,
Marcus
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pwhodges

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostThu Aug 23, 2012 5:08 pm

If in the future I need to reinstall the whole organ (say on my next computer), do I need to apply the v1.2 update to the earlier parts of the organ, or does installing this final part include any updates to the earlier parts?

Paul
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NickNelson

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostFri Aug 24, 2012 12:43 am

telemanr wrote:I'm in the middle of a kidney stone episode. Kind of reduces desire to enjoy much.


From personal experience you have my deepest sympathies; but it will pass. ;-)

Nick
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DavidMoore

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostFri Aug 24, 2012 7:08 am

David,

I can't enlarge on the excellent review above, but want to thank you for your diligent work in producing the full Hereford Willis sample set. The full complement of this instrument is a joy to play and hear. And the exploration has just begun. Bravo!

David
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donlewns

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostFri Aug 24, 2012 10:59 am

*
Last edited by donlewns on Sat Aug 25, 2012 9:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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sclg

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Re: Hereford Complete now released

PostFri Aug 24, 2012 11:13 am

donlewns wrote:Dear David,
How about being more proactive in your announcements by sending an e-mail to past customers. Surely, you have the e-mail adddresses of all of us who have bought vol 1 and 2? I have been checking your website since the beginning of June for news and find out second hand from a Facebook HW site. Not all of us check the Forum everyday and then even so search in sub-topics where your announcement is posted.


Give the man time - he only released it two days ago!!!

... and I've ordered my upgrade :D

Steve
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