How to Play Light Sounds on Hammond Organ

If you’ve ever seen or heard an old Hammond organ, you probably noticed how heavy the music feels. This instrument wasn’t created to make Disney style music or any kind of music that is suitable for light moods. After all, the Phantom of the Opera played an organ. While this organ is meant to play heavier sounds, anyone can play light sounds on the Hammond organ. These notes sound lighter and less heavy than the notes you’d usually associate with such an instrument.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Hammond organ

1. Use the three white bars in the middle of the keyboard. You’ll find these bars at the very top of the organ and they can easily be slid forward and back to change the pitch.

2. Adjust the middle bar furthest to your right to produce the light and airy tone you’re looking for. When this bar is pulled out as far as it will go, it will create a completely light tone that doesn’t sound too light or high in pitch.

3. Pull the bar on the left of this bar to create a lower pitch. You’ll notice that the further you move to your left, the lower the tones will go. Likewise, the further to the right you go, the higher the pitch will be.

4. Push the bars in to create an even lighter tone with a higher pitch. A good rule of thumb is that when you pull the bars out the sound gets lower and when you push them in, the sound gets higher.

5. Play with the different bars to create a unique sound for your needs. You’ll want to practice for awhile to understand how the Hammond organ works and how you can turn the typically heavier sounds into something lighter and more airy.

Tips & Warnings

• Don’t use the upper keys on the organ during this process. The upper keys produce high pitched tones more suitable for churches than what we’re doing here.