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How to Lower the Pitch of an Organ Pipe

Organ pipes are cut to specific sizes so when air flows through them they create a specific pitch. You can't cut a single organ pipe to lower the pitch since it will destroy the sound of the rest of the pipe. This is why an organ has several pipes that allow you to play any pitch you need from the chromatic scale. Changing the pitch by selecting different sized organ pipes is possible with the use of the organ's keyboard.

Step 1 Learn how the keys of the organ work. Starting with the lowest white key on the left of the piano; as you ascend to the right, the pitch will ascend. The black keys between the white keys allow you to play half steps and sound pitches halfway between the pitch of the white keys. Two white keys next to each other are also a half step away from each other.

Step 2 Play a pitch on the organ by pressing any key on the organ keyboard. By playing different keys, different pipes are activated creating several different pitches for you to play.

Step 3 Lower the pitch of the pipe by choosing any key on the keyboard that is lower, or to the left, of the original pitch. This will change the pitch played and lower the pitch of the pipes.

If you absolutely must cut an organ pipe, you will have to take it to a music store to have them send it to a specialized instrument maker. They can cut the organ pipe to a specific pitch for you. However, it is usually best and less expensive to order the organ pipe size you need from your organ dealer. You can muffle the sound of an organ pipe by placing a cloth around the base of the pipe. This will give the impression of a lower sound, but it will still play the same pitch.

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