List of pipe organ stops - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

For audio examples, please see the article on organ stops.

An organ stop
Organ stop
An organ stop is a component of a pipe organ that admits pressurized air to a set of organ pipes. Its name comes from the fact that stops can be used selectively by the organist; some can be "on" , while others can be "off" .The term can also refer...

can mean one of three things:

the control on an organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...

console that selects a particular sound
the row of organ pipe
Organ pipe
An organ pipe is a sound-producing element of the pipe organ that resonates at a specific pitch when pressurized air is driven through it. Each pipe is tuned to a specific note of the musical scale...

s, used to create a particular sound, more appropriately known as a rank
the sound itself

This is a sortable list of names that may be found on electronic

Electronic organ

An electronic organ is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally, it was designed to imitate the sound of pipe organs, theatre organs, band sounds, or orchestral sounds....

and pipe organ

Pipe organ

The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...

stops. Countless stops have been designed over the centuries. This list deals mainly with common stops on Baroque

Baroque

The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...

, classical and romantic organs.

Stop name	Alternate name	Type	Notes
Aeoline	Aéoline Éolienne	String	an extremely soft stop with a very delicate, airy tone; built frequently as a single-rank stop, or as a double-rank Aéoline céleste
Blockflöte		Flute	German for "recorder"; a stopped-flute of 4′ or 2′ pitch, taking its name from the common flute called a "recorder" which its tone closely resembles
Bombarde		Reed	a powerful reed-stop, occurring on the manuals at 16′ (and occasionally 8′), or in the pedal at 16′ or 32′ pitch
Bourdon		Flute	a wide-scaled stopped-flute, 16′ or 8′ on the manuals, and at 16′ (Soubasse) or 32′ (Contrabourdon)
Celeste Voix céleste The Voix celeste, [Fr.] is an organ stop consisting of either one or two ranks of pipes slightly out of tune. The term celeste refers to a rank of pipes detuned slightly so as to produce a beating effect when combined with a normally tuned rank...	Voix céleste	String, 2 ranks	a 8′ string stop composed of two pipes for each note, one being tuned slightly sharp to create an undulating effect
Cello	Violoncelle	String	a string stop at 8′ or 16′; It has a broader, warmer, more "romantic" tone than the Gamba
Choralbass		Principal	a 4′ octave Diapason in the pedal division
Clarinet	Clarionet	Reed	a reed stop with a richer tone imitating the orchestral instrument.
Clairon		Reed	a 4′ octave of the French style Trompette
Clarion		Reed	a 4′ octave of the Trumpet
Cornet Cornet (organ stop) A Cornet is an organ stop most commonly of principal or flute tone quality that contains multiple ranks of pipes.The Cornet is primarily used as a solo voice and the ranks of the Cornet follows the harmonic series; 8', 4', 2 2/3', 2', 1 3/5'. The 8' rank is stopped while the other ranks are open...		Flute	pronounced kor-NAY; a multi-rank stop consisting of up to five ranks of wide-scaled pipes. The pitches include 8′, 4′, ′, 2′ and ′. Three- and four-rank cornets eliminate 8′ and 4′ ranks. This stop is not imitative of the brass instrument cornet Cornet The cornet is a brass instrument very similar to the trumpet, distinguished by its conical bore, compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. It is not related to the renaissance and early baroque cornett or cornetto.-History:The cornet was... .
Cornopean		Reed	a common reed stop used for both chorus and solo, generally in a swell division; The tone is similar to the trumpet.
Cromorne	Krummhorn	Reed	distinctive reed stop, originating from the cromorne Cromorne Cromorne is a French woodwind reed instrument whose design originates in the early Baroque period in France, with a sound that is similar in sound to an oversize oboe... typically of low to moderate volume or power and often having a distinctly buzzing or bleating sound; "Cremona", a common variant of the stop's name, has nothing to do with the town of Cremona Cremona Cremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana . It is the capital of the province of Cremona and the seat of the local City and Province governments... in Italy nor the famous school of violin makers who lived there.
Diapason		Principal	a flue stop which is the "backbone" sound of the organ; Most commonly at 8′ on a manual, and 8′ or 16′ on the pedals. Modern organ builders use the term Principal.
Diaphone			a special type of organ pipe, producing tone by using a felt hammer to beat air through the resonator; Common on theater organs, it is not often seen on church and concert instruments.
Doublette		Principal	2' Super-Octave most commonly found in French organs
Fagotto	Bassoon Bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature... Fagott	Reed	one of the earliest pedal reeds at 16′ It can also be found at the same pitch on the manuals of larger organs, as part of the manual reed chorus.
Flageolet Flageolet (organ stop) The Flageolet is an organ stop belonging to the flute group of flue pipes. It is usually found in 2-feet pitch, and more rarely 1-feet pitch. The tone is generally soft in character....		Flute	A romantic style flute in 2' or 1' pitch.
Fugara			A flue stop in 4' or 8' pitch. The tone has a sharp "stringy" quality.
Gamba	Viol da Gamba Viole	String	one of the earliest designs of string stops; named after the Baroque Baroque The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music... instrument viola da gamba Viol The viol is any one of a family of bowed, fretted and stringed musical instruments developed in the mid-late 15th century and used primarily in the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The family is related to and descends primarily from the Renaissance vihuela, a plucked instrument that preceded the... ; It has a thinner, more cutting tone than the Cello stop.
Gedackt Gedackt Gedackt is the name of a family of stops in pipe organ building. They are one of the most common types of organ flue pipe. The name is a German word, meaning "capped" or "covered".- History :...	Gedeckt	Flute	a basic stopped 8′ flute in the manuals, and stopped 16′ and/or 8′ flute voice in the pedal
Gemshorn	Cor de Chamois	Principal	German for "chamois Chamois The chamois, Rupicapra rupicapra, is a goat-antelope species native to mountains in Europe, including the Carpathian Mountains of Romania, the European Alps, the Tatra Mountains, the Balkans, parts of Turkey, and the Caucasus. The chamois has also been introduced to the South Island of New Zealand... horn"; a narrow-scale, tapered Principal with a tone falling between Principal and Flute.
Harmonic Flute		Flute	an open metal flute made to sound an octave above its length by means of a small hole at its midpoint; This stop speaks a very pure flute tone and was popularized by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll Aristide Cavaillé-Coll Aristide Cavaillé-Coll was a French organ builder. He is considered by many to be the greatest organ builder of the 19th century because he combined both science and art to make his instruments... .
Larigot		Flute	a single-rank mutation stop of ′ pitch
Mixture		Flute or Principal	any multi-rank stop; Mixtures Mixture (music) A mixture is an organ stop, usually of principal tone quality, that contains multiple ranks of pipes. It is designed to be drawn with a combination of stops that forms a complete chorus . The mixture sounds the upper harmonics of each note of the keyboard... enhance the harmonics of the fundamental pitch, and are intended for use with foundation stops, not alone. Mixture IV, for example, indicates four ranks.
Nachthorn	Night Horn Cor de Nuit	Flute	a wide-scaled flute producing a soft, but penetrating sound; occurring at 8′ and 4′ pitch
Nasard	Nasat Nazard Twelfth	Flute	a single-rank mutation stop of ′ pitch in the manuals and ′ in the pedals; It is the lowest non-unison stop that reinforces the 8′ fundamental harmonic and 16′ pedal
Oboe	Hautbois	Reed	a single-rank reed stop used as both a solo stop and a chorus reed
Octave	Oktav Prestant	Principal	a 4′ Principal on the manuals
Ophicleide		Reed	a powerful reed stop, much like the Bombarde; pitched as a 16′ or 32′ in the pedal division or found as an 8′ or 16′ on the manuals
Orchestral Oboe		Reed	a different stop than Oboe; designed specifically to imitate the orchestral instrument
Piccolo		Flute	a flute or occasionally a diapason at 1′
Posaune		Reed	German for "trombone"; voiced to blend with an ensemble
Principal	Montre Principale Prinzipal	Principal	a prominent Diapason, commonly found at 8′ as well as 16', 4', and 2' pitches; It is the "basic voice" of the organ.
Quarte		Flute	a flute at 2′; short for Quarte de nasard, sounding an interval of a fourth above the nasard stop
Rankette		Reed	a reed stop with length resonators producing a buzzy sound with low fundamental.
Rohrflöte	Chimney Flute	Flute	German for "reed flute"; a semi-capped metal pipe with a narrow, open-ended tube (i.e. "chimney") extending from the top which resembles a reed Reed (plant) Reed is a generic polyphyletic botanical term used to describe numerous tall, grass-like plants of wet places, which are the namesake vegetation of reed beds...
Salicional		String	an 8′ string stop; It is the most common stop used for the Voix céleste in combination with a second rank of salicionals tuned slightly sharp.
Sifflöte	Piccolo Sifflet	Flute	a 1′ flute
Super Octave		Principal	the manual 2′ Principal or Diapason; Its name merely signifies that it is above (i.e. "super") the 4′ Octave.
Tierce	Seventeenth Terz	Flute	a single-rank mutation stop pitched ′, supporting the 8′ harmonic series
Trombone	Posaune Buccina	Reed	a powerful reed stop, simulating the trombone Trombone The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate... ; most commonly in the pedal at 16′ or 32′ pitch and under a high wind pressure
Trompette en Chamade En chamade En chamade refers to powerfully-voiced reed stops in a pipe organ that have been mounted horizontally, rather than vertically, in the front of the organ case, projecting out into the church or concert hall...	Fan Trumpet Horizontal Trumpet Trompette à Chamade	Reed	a powerful reed of the trumpet-family, usually 8′ in the manuals and 16′, voiced as a brilliant solo stop, capable of being heard over full organ
Trompette Militaire Trompette militaire The trompette militaire is a loud majestic sounding organ stop, with brassy, penetrating tone. It is noted for its installation in Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, on the fifth manual of the Henry Willis Organ in St Paul's Cathedral, London, and in the 1968 rebuild of the organ of Exeter Cathedral...		Reed	a powerful reed of the trumpet-family, with a with brassy, penetrating tone
Trumpet	Trompete Trompette	Reed	a loud reed stop, generally a single rank, with vertical full-length resonators flared to form a bell; In traditional organ building, the Trumpet is a firmer, more solid-pitched stop than the French Trompette, which emphasizes overtones at the expense of fundamental tone.
Tuba		Reed	a powerful large-scale reed of the trumpet-family usually 8′ in the manuals and 16′ (sometimes 32′) in the pedals; The tuba-voice is named after the ancient Roman trumpets though not imitating their sound. Generally on high wind-pressure and usually the loudest voice (decibel Decibel The decibel is a logarithmic unit that indicates the ratio of a physical quantity relative to a specified or implied reference level. A ratio in decibels is ten times the logarithm to base 10 of the ratio of two power quantities... level) in the organ, whereas the various 32′ stops are the most powerful voices (sound wave pressure).
Twenty-Second	Kleine Principal	Principal	a 1′ diapason
Unda Maris		Flute	Latin for "wave of the sea"; a very soft rank tuned slightly sharp or flat. It is drawn with another soft rank to create a very slow undulation similar to, but less prominent than, a Voix céleste. Occasionally built as a double-rank stop called Unda Maris II, one rank at standard pitch and the other tuned sharp.
Vox Humana Vox humana The Vox Humana is a short-resonator reed stop on the pipe organ, so named because of its supposed resemblance to the human voice. As a rule, the stop is used with a tremulant, which undulates the wind supply, causing a vibrato effect...	Voix Humaine	Reed	a type of reed stop designed to impressionistically imitate the human voice

External links

Encyclopedia of Organ Stops, a fairly exhaustive reference that describes over two thousand stop names.
Pipe organ tonal design, a French organ builder's site in sometimes puzzling English.

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