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Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

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takatsa

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Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostSun Jan 31, 2021 5:29 am

I am happy to inform everyone that completed my new sample set of Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany (Hungary) . The organ has two manuals and pedal and 24 stops.

Tihany is a village on the northern shore of Lake Balaton on the Tihany Peninsula. The Tihany peninsula is one of the most beautiful and spectacular points of Lake Balaton. The peninsula, famous mainly for its abbey, is surrounded by many legends.
The Benedictine Abbey was founded by King Andrew I of Hungary in 1055 in honor of the Virgin Mary and St. Aignan of Orleans. Of the ancient monastery, only the sub-church and the royal crypt remain. The current Baroque church was built between 1719-1754 in Baroque style. The organ and its surroundings, with 15 musical angels on the choir lattice, are one of the most beautiful monuments of Hungarian Baroque sculpture. These, as well as the magnificent wood carvings of the main altar and the pulpit, were made by Sebastian Stuhlhoff, who was the carpenter of the monastery.

The original organ was made by Johann Daniel Silbermann in 1765. The organ was one manual and 12 registers. This organ has served excellently for almost 200 years. In 1945, the II. in World War I the organ was hit by a grenade and its pipe-material was almost completely destroyed. In the communist era, a few-register, one-manual Angster organ was built into the intact organ house, which was expanded several times in the following decades. The current organ was built by the Aquincum organ factory in 1993. The disposition of the organ was designed by organists Lukács Áment and Gábor Trajtler. They considered the Silbermann organ in Grosshartmannsdorf as the basis for the design because they wanted to restore the sound of the original Tihany organ.

The sample sets are available in wave format 48kHz/24bit, stereo, multiple loops (1-8) and multiple releases (3 levels). Equal, a=440 Hz. The reverb 3.5 s, reflects the original acoustics of the church. Hauptwerk v4.2 and v5 and v6 supported for the Organ Definition Files.
The sample sets made in several forms.
Original and extended versions: stereo near (semidry), stereo far (wet) and six-channels surround.
In the surround versions you can adjust the perspective by setting the volume of the near, far and rear recordings.
For the near (semidry) versions, the IR reverb file of the temple is available for use with Hauptwerk v5-6.

Screenshots
Audio demos
More information

Acknowledgements:
The following friends helped me to make and publish the sample set (in alphabetical order): Dominique Dantand, Gérard Lefranc, Nagy István, Pecze AndorJean-Pierre Silvestre and Adrian Wheal. If something's done well, it's thanks to them.
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dkoschinski

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostSun Jan 31, 2021 7:25 pm

Hi Augustine,
Just a question..... How did you create the rear and surround samples of this set ?
It seems to me that the front samples of this organ have been recorded reasonable dry and that a (on location recorded rear) IR file has been placed over them to create a rear and surround model using a special spatial software-model. Is that right ?
I have the feeling that the given rear samples were not been recorded separately. When an IR file is used as such you can never approximate the correct reverberation reflections per pipe / stop how it really sounds on location. Manufacturing a sampleset with real recorded and post-processed rear and / or surround samples also takes a lot more time than you probably spent on this set.
So: is this organ actually recorded with 6 separate microphones to approach a 'real' rear and surround version, or not? In my opinion, by actually recording an organ with 6 individual audio tracks (and therefore also 6 used microphones) you approach a very real 'rear' sound that best approximates the acoustics on location, with a sound far away from a artificial IR file.

Kind regards,
Danny
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takatsa

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostMon Feb 01, 2021 4:08 am

dkoschinski wrote:Hi Augustine,
Just a question..... How did you create the rear and surround samples of this set ?
It seems to me that the front samples of this organ have been recorded reasonable dry and that a (on location recorded rear) IR file has been placed over them to create a rear and surround model using a special spatial software-model. Is that right ? I have the feeling that the given rear samples were not been recorded separately.
Danny

Hi Danny,
You’ve been trying to expire me for a few years now and you’ve been accused of lying. You still do that. You question the information I provide about my samples. And with that, you're ruining my credit.
I never deal with the work of others, only my own work. I do this because I consider it ethical. If a customer writes a critique of my work, I will consider it and try to correct the mistakes, trying to live up to expectations. You never bought anything from me. You are also a pattern maker who claims that another pattern maker is lying.

Other sample makers keep their secrets jealous and do not release them. I will do it now. I made my first samples with 4 Octava microphones, but soon switched to 6-microphone recording. Until 2017, I made stereo-mix samples from my 6 microphone recordings, and I indicated this in all descriptions. As of 2017, however, no more stereo-mix samples were delayed, only 6-channel surround samples. (I have already worked with 6 microphones before, so it is possible to reissue my old samples in surround mode, and I do so, such as the new edition of the Buda mountain sample or the Szentgotthard sample.). I made several samples in co-production (e.g. Aeolian-skinner) and in this case I also described my recording technique accurately.

I’ve spent all my revenue in recent years buying microphones. So now I have 3 pairs of Neumann microphones and 2 pairs of Earthworks microphones that I use according to the location. I always record with 6 microphones, 24 bits in 48 KHz quality. These include a pair of near-front, a pair of far-front and a pair of backgrounds. I took photos of my microphones this morning. I also have two octave microphones, but it no longer fit the picture. I hope this picture satisfies you.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6bz5j48wsbapu ... O.JPG?dl=0

I wish you a successful sample job. I am watching your work with interest and you can be sure that I will never make untrue critical remarks about these.
Augustine
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dkoschinski

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostMon Feb 01, 2021 10:24 am

Hi Augustine,
It was never my intention to accuse you of something, claiming that you use the work of others and so on. I am sorry if you feel that way, and I don't think lying is an issue in this matter. Yes, in the past I asked you some technical questions (like this one) and we can argue on that. But I am just interested in the process of things. Anyway, thank you for the information provided and good luck.

Danny
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morharn

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostMon Feb 01, 2021 11:42 am

Hi Augustine,

Just installed your Tihany sample set, surround version, so this is a first impression. The organ seems to be very powerful for its size---simple registrations are quite satisfactory. Especially in manual II stops there is a wonderful sound that I do not immediately recognize, reminiscent of the resonance of a harpsichord or similar instrument. This was audible in recordings, and it is present for me as well. It is unlike most organs, but very enjoyable.

Unlike many organs, all the divisions of the Tihany seem very full and independently capable. It is nice to have such a strong pedal division.

Bill
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StephenM

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostMon Feb 01, 2021 5:52 pm

Augustine,

I am disappointed that someone would use a public forum such as this to malign your efforts. A private email would have been appropriate and you could have dealt with it as it deserved.

I have downloaded (too) many sample sets and purchased (too) many. A few times I have had an issue with a sample set and have sent a private email to the sample set provided. Each time I have been answered carefully and generously.

I have twice emailed Augustine with a question about a sample set and have found him more than generous and helpful in his reply.

I read Danny's response as hollow.

Let's keep this forum as a meeting of friends and enthusiasts who want the best for each other's organ playing, especially for those whose organ playing is as ordinary as mine.

Stephen
Australia
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takatsa

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostTue Feb 02, 2021 3:34 am

StephenM wrote:Augustine,
I have twice emailed Augustine with a question about a sample set and have found him more than generous and helpful in his reply.
Stephen
Australia

Dear Stephen,
Thank you for your spiritual support. This means a lot to me and gives me encouragement to continue my work so far. I wish you much pleasure in using Hauptwerk samples.
All the best,
Augustine
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joeroberts

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostTue Feb 02, 2021 2:45 pm

Beautiful audio samples...I'm going to convert them into my personal CD, OK?
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takatsa

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostWed Feb 03, 2021 4:03 am

joeroberts wrote:Beautiful audio samples...I'm going to convert them into my personal CD, OK?

I don't have control over audio demos. These are uploaded to contrebombarde.com. Because these demos are free to download from contrebombarde.com, there is nothing to stop someone from writing them to media for personal use.
This is my opinion.
Anyway, I'm so glad you like these recording. :)
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JulianMoney-Kyrle

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostWed Feb 03, 2021 6:37 am

I, too, have been impressed by the personal support I have had from Augustine when I had an issue with one of his samplesets. In this case it was a quiet rumble just audible on the release tail of one note - I think it was a nazard. It sounded like a distant large diesel vehicle moving off from stationary in the street outside. It very quiet and wasn't intrusive but I though I should mention it to him. Augustine couldn't hear it himself (of course we have different audio systems), but took the trouble to re-pitch the sample of an adjacent pipe for me to download as a replacement.
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Sylvaticus

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostWed Feb 03, 2021 12:21 pm

I haven't purchased a sample set in quite a while, partly because I am still using v.4, but I am glad I bought this one. I don't know whether it's the surround arrangement, or the new microphones, or new technique, or what - but this set (on my setup, at least) seems to give a fuller, more vital sound for any given stop than any other set I have. I don't even miss the 16' manual stops. There is a softness to the speech that is different - not as "impactful", as they like to say nowadays, but that I find very beautiful to listen to, and easy on the ear.

I found all the stops useful, too, and the blend is very good to my ear. I am especially appreciative of the pedal posaune, which seems so often to be the downfall of some baroque sets; this one feels gentle enough to dialog with flutes, but assertive enough to add sufficient gravitas to the plenum, so I don't need a separate bassoon stop. And no false notes that can't be voiced to blend with the rest. It is a joy to play Bach on this set; I even tried a Rheinberger sonata and, once I have the stepper set up for it, I am convinced it will come off well on this organ.

As always, I will fuss to get the voicing right for my setup, which will be an undertaking with the three different perspectives; that, though, is also made easier with the separate sliders for each, and I am optimistic that the result will be well worth the work.

Altogether, it seems to be "the little organ that could" in all I have tried so far. Even the price is little. Thanks so much, Augustine, for all your hard work!
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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostThu Feb 04, 2021 12:10 am

I want to add that I have the utmost respect for Augustine and his work. He has been not only unfailingly helpful to me in supporting the sets I purchased but extremely generous, too. The value of his sets continues to be extraordinary considering their outstanding quality and the modest prices he charges (many for free). I listened to the demo recordings of Tihany and agree with all the positive comments that have been made. I would add that these demos confirm for me what I have already discovered in some of the other sample sets I purchased from Augustine. He seems to have greatly improved his recording equipment and techniques over time and seems to have mastered the art of presenting an organ with a very clear and articulate sound while at the same time faithfully preserving the reverberation which envelops it. This makes his sample sets very useful as practice instruments. Yet they have plenty of bloom and sound wonderful in recitals as well. This is quite an accomplishment with a tremendous amount of work and experimentation behind it I am sure!
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takatsa

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostSat Feb 06, 2021 5:34 pm

Dear JulianMoney-Kyrle, Sylvaticus, Kasterling and Morharm,
Thank you very much for your positive feedback. It is very good and encourages me to work even more and even better. For me, it is my greatest pleasure if you are satisfied with my work, and I contribute to your better to know of the organs and churches of Hungary.
But we have the idea that "one can have too much of a good thing". In the end, I will be even more confident than I should be. I know I still have a long way to go and I can never be satisfied with the result. Thanks again.:)
Augustine
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lefranc22

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostTue Feb 16, 2021 3:03 am

A nice concert by Jean-Pierre Silvestre with the AVO Tihany semple set, surround, Hauptwerk 6.
J.S. Bach: Dogma in music (german organ mass or Clavier-Übung III)
https://youtu.be/BwEKAtH0BgU
J.S. Bach: various pieces
https://youtu.be/ZdqG80Hp64Y
Charles Collin and Théodore Dubois: romantic and early 20th century pieces
https://youtu.be/PkNaMsnIsLc
Enjoy
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bobhehmann

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Re: Baroque Organ of the Benedictine Abbey in Tihany - New

PostThu Feb 18, 2021 5:26 pm

I've been playing with Augustin'e new Tihany for the last two weeks, and to use an American Baseball metaphor: Augustine and his team hit this one out of the park!

Two things jumped out at me - tonality and articulation. I'm running the full surround version (all 6 channels) mixed down to a single pair of stereo monitors, plus sub. I'm taking all reverb from the sample-set, not adding any additional IR reverb.

The individual ranks sound with a purity and clarity that I just love, and maintain their beauty in combination. But even more important to me, I found I could somehow match what I heard with what my fingers were doing (or not doing!) with rare clarity. This was noticeable enough to me that I found my playing improved, I perceived reduced technical difficulty, and I could learn faster, as more of my senses aligned reliably. It is hard for me to describe, but the sensation was compelling to me. I found myself playing single keyboard pieces (Bach WTC, Bigg's transcriptions for a single keyboard) over and over again, experimenting with articulation, and experiencing subtleties that are normally beyond my skill level.

My only analogy is to consider playing on a touchless, mushy, cheap synth keyboard, then moving to a responsive tracker action or to my grand piano - that's the closest I can come to explaining.

Thanks against Sir Augustine (and friends...)

PS - to any cricket fans out there: what is your cultural equivalent metaphor to my baseball one, to express outstanding performance?
Cheers, Bob
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