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Classic Touchscreen Console plays to 50,000+

Classic Organ's Hauptwerk touchscreen console provided the organ accompanyment for the closing mass of the 49th International Eucharistic Congress in Quebec City June 22nd.

Marc D'Anjou was the organist for the two and a half hour mass. In addition to brilliant solo work, he also accompanied the 500 member choir and the brass ensemble.

See slideshow and more details

Phantom of the Opera on a "Phantom" Organ

Maestro Robert Raines led the Brampton Symphony Youth Orchestra through Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera Halloween weekend at the wonderful Rose Theatre in Brampton. Organist Ron Greidanus accompanied the adult BSO as well in a program that included Mozart, Bach and Saint-Saens.

An Emergency Interim Organ

Classic received a call at 10am requesting an organ for a 3:30pm wedding that day! Hauptwerk was up, running and sounding great as the Bride came down the aisle.

Special complements to Fr. Chris for hosting us and to organist Melva for her open attitude in embracing the new technology.

Affordable 3-Manual Tab Organ

Ahlborn-Galanti has released an affordable and fine sounding 3 Manual Organ.

• 43 Speaking Stops
• 282 Independently Voiceable Stops
• Tracker Touch Keyboards
• Internal Audio
• Plus 8 channel external capability
• Fully voiceable

Mississauga Living Arts Centre

Andrew Ager, Director of Music and Composer-in-Residence at St. James Cathedral Toronto accompanied John Barnum's Mississauga Symphony Orchestra during Camille Saint-Saens' Symphony No.3 at the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga.

Ager also debuted his own composition L'Orgue Joyeux and performed Widor's Tocatta on the Hauptwerk Mutin/Cavaillé-Coll, the original of which Widor himself inaugurated in the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Metz outside Paris France.

New Sample Set Used at the C.B.L. Fundraiser

1000 + people from the Bible League of Canada's Faith on the Frontlines Banquet of Praise attended Carmen's Banquet Hall in Hamilton.

As many of the attendees were of Dutch descent the sound of organist Gerald Smink playing the famous Hinsz Organ seemed to bring out the best in the singers!

Come in and Try it Out

Virtually indistinguishable from the original, the New B-3 maintains the famous red walnut cabinet, multi-contact keying and uses digital tone-wheels to recreate the distinct and fabulous sound of the legendary Hammond B3.

It's in the showroom along with the XK-3c System, the Leslie 3300 and 122XB. So come on in and try them out. Where else can you do that but here?

Feature Article in The Catholic Register

Classic's Hauptwerk Touchscreen Console was featured in the Catholic Register - Canada's Catholic News Source - as a result of the closing mass of the 49th Eucharistic Congress in Quebec City.

> We are very thankful for this nation-wide coverage of our Hauptwerk console. We are quite proud to have assembled it and proved it's viability for use in a world-class concert situation. Thanks to all of those who made it happen: Apple, Echo Audio, Touch-Base, Altmann, and Keytec. Most of all we want to thank Martin Dyde (Hauptwerk) and Brett Milan (Milan Digital Audio) for their great products.

See details, pics and video of the event

The Red Piano

The "red piano" (our Nord Stage 88 by Clavia) makes it's debut at the Burlington Jazz Festival.  Our Portable B3 and Nord Stage 88 were used on stage throughout the festival.

Peter Appleyard takes a spin on the Stage 88's Steinway D sample.

Trinity College Choir and Festival Singers

Classic had the pleasure of providing the Hauptwerk Touchscreen Console to accompany the Trinity College Choir Cambridge U.K., directed by Stephen Layton and the Elora Festival Singers, directed by Noel Edison as part of the Elora Festival.

The choral work was phenomenal. It blew the doors off 'the Barn'. So thanks to Stephen and Noel for allowing us to be part of that. Also thanks to Andrew McLaren who managed the whole event.

The interesting technical breakthrough here was that this was the first time we multichanneled Hauptwerk through the house audio. Thanks to Sean Hooper from Metalworks Production Group. Sean is a theatre audio specialist who enthusiastically helped us have 8 distinct channels for amplifying our Hauptwerk Organ instrument.

This degree (and more) of multichanneling is routine in our installed instruments, but Sean helped set the standard for using our Hauptwerk Console in performing arts venues.

The second concert "Double Double" was recorded for CBC Radio by Ed Marshall.

Delights Bracebridge with Homecoming Concerts

Ryan Jackson, fresh from his graduation from Yale and his acceptance to Julliard, came back to his home town to play two recitals.

Ryan is one of the new statesmen of organ performance. He brings people into the performance by turning the console toward the audience, having a live feed of the manuals and pedals on a large screen, and by conversing with the crowd between pieces.

Elaine Loberg also needs to be mentioned as the patron and promoter who made this even such a sucess. Yay Elaine!

To our knowledge, this was the first full professional concert recital performed for a paying audience on a Hauptwerk based organ in the world.

Hauptwerk as a Teaching Tool

We are very excited to have been a part of the Whitby Summer Institute for Church Music this year by providing our Hautpwerk Console as the primary teaching instrument. Chris Dawes, Patricia Wright, Michael Bloss, and Lori-Anne Dolloff all provided valuable teaching and insight.

One of the reasons we are excited to have been a part of this event is that it was able to highlight our Hauptwerk Touchscreen Console as a teaching instrument. The students had the ability to play Bach on a 1721 Silbermann sample set, Widor on a Cavaille-Coll and contemporary music on an E.M. Skinner sample set. They were also able to experiment with temperaments at the touch of a... screen.

We hope that this will be the start of a trend to use our console in leading educational environments and give students the ability to play repetoire on instruments similar to the ones for which it was written.

The signed copy...

Tony Monaco lights up the New B3 and Leslie 3300.

Tony's signed copy of the Portable New B3 is available on Ebay starting at $10,000.

Classic visits St. Michael's

St. Michael's Choir School Organ students recently had a chance play Bach on a 'virtual' 17th Century Schnitger Organ via the Classic Hauptwerk Touchscreen Console.

Church of the Redeemer

Touch & Go! A young Pianist takes to the Hauptwerk Touchscreen Console after the Organix concert on the Casavant at Church of the Redeemer, Avenue Road and Bloor.

River Run Centre

Organist Michael Bloss plays what may be the debut performance of a Cavaillé-Coll French Symphonic ‘virtual’ pipe organ at the River Run Centre in Guelph. The Hauptwerk Organ, heard through the performing arts centre’s wonderful audio system has festival organizers imagining new venues for the organ!

For this performance we used the Notre Dame de Metz Cavaillé-Coll sample set from Milan Digital Audio.

Classic's new touchscreen Hauptwerk practice consoles will also be available to try at many other venues this Summer. So keep watching for details!

MJP artists on cover Jan, Mar, Apr 2008

Classic Organ is pleased to announce that our MIDIjet Pro wireless MIDI users have made the cover of Keyboard Magazine with their wireless shows for 3 of the last 4 issues.

January 2008 was Justin Timberlake's Future Sex Love Tour which featured 3 wireless Roland AX7s and a wireless Zendrum. The March issue featured Jordan Rudess of Dreamtheater with his MIDIjet Pro enabled Zen Riffer by Charles Tentindo. And finally, the April 2008 issue Featured Lisa Harriton of Smashing Pumpkins.

Thank yous go out to the artists and thank yous to Keyboard Magazine. It is exciting for us to know that the technology we make at Classic allows great artists to touch the lives of thousands.

Gets A New AG3200

Classic Organ is pleased to announce the coming installation of Ahlborn-Galanti AG3200 in Scarborough Bluffs United Church. Our Classic technical team will be working with SBU architects in creating an esthetic and acoustically pleasing experience.

The AG3200 includes 62 Speaking Stops, 376 Independently Voiceable Stops and Tracker Touch Keyboards. A 16:1 Theatre Audio & Sub-Bass will accommodate the Great/ Pedal, Choir and Fanfare Trumpet/ Ethereal antiphonal divisions.

Congratulations and special thanks to the musical team at SBU!

Classic goes to NAMM 2008

Inspiration and information

The NAMM Show is the largest music products trade show in United States. Held every January in Anaheim, California, USA the show brings together all facets of the music products industry to reveal new musical instruments/products... More than 80,000 NAMM Members and guests attended the January 2007 show. The acronym NAMM originally stood for the National Association of Music Merchants, but has evolved from a national entity representing the interests of music products retailers to an international association including both commercial, retail members and affiliates.

See: http://www.thenammshow.com/

St. Philips Gets a New AG2400

A new generation...

Organist Douglas Cowling of St. Philip's Anglican Church, Etobicoke puts the New Ahlborn-Galanti AG2400 throught the paces at the Organ's Dedication Sunday Jan 27, 2008

The installation included 14:1 audio; 8 on the Pedal & Great in the main body of the church, 4 on the Choir in the chancel and 2 up high at the back with the sub-woofer for the fanfare trumpet.

The installation was completed by Classic veteran technician and digital voicer Arie Vandenberg. Says Arie, "As the traditional "cross" shaped Anglican building is very challenging, this AG2400, the first of it's generation in Canada is truly a work in progress. With the voicing capabilities of the instrument our goal is to fill the room with an ambient and pleasant sound."