The keyboard instrument commonly called the “king of instruments” is the pipe organ.
A pipe organ produces sound by sending pressurized air through pipes controlled from one or more keyboards, called manuals, and usually a pedalboard. Its pipes vary greatly in length, shape, and material, allowing the instrument to imitate orchestral colors and produce an exceptionally broad pitch range.
The nickname reflects the organ’s size, power, tonal variety, and historical importance in churches and concert halls. Large organs may contain thousands of pipes, multiple divisions, and elaborate control systems. Smaller organs can be compact while retaining the same basic principle of wind passing through pipes.
The pipe organ is different from an electronic organ, which generates or reproduces sound electronically. It is also different from a reed organ, whose sound comes primarily from vibrating reeds. Organ history reaches back to the ancient Greek hydraulis, while modern pipe-organ construction developed through centuries of European experimentation.