which shape pedalboard? radial, concave, straight?

[wyzwinszh]

Hello everyone,

Could you please suggest me to choose the shape of pedalboard, radial,straight concave or straight flat?

As I know most European Church organs uses straight flat, so I think maybe the straight flat is better for both home practice and church playing? My height is 178cm.

And also most organ music videos from youtube, the masters use straight pedalboards?

Thank you again,

WYZ

[OrgansR4Me]

You've chosen a hot topic. The AGO (American Guild of Organist) followers aren't happy with anything that is not radial and concave. But as you mention there are other configurations and with time and practice an organist can feel right at home with any of them. This question comes up most often from forum members who play on more than one instrument and in more than one location -- they are the ones who express some level of discomfort when changing from straight to concave, etc. Using good heel/toe technique can quickly overcome the differences as the foot feels for pedals using the breaks between d sharp/f sharp and and a sharp/c sharp and then following the studs.

[Snowbandit]

I have a 25 note flat radial and 32 note concave radial, AGO standard, in the house. In my opinion the AGO standard is much easier to use once you move away from the center portion. Ideally I would want my home practice instrument to be the same as one used in other venues however.

[myorgan]

I have a 25 note flat radial and 32 note concave radial, AGO standard, in the house. In my opinion the AGO standard is much easier to use once you move away from the center portion. Ideally I would want my home practice instrument to be the same as one used in other venues however.

Snowbandit is totally on the mark. Ergonomically, the body is not built to stretch in the manner that either straight or flat pedalboards require. As with all technological developments, the organ has become more ergonomically friendly over time--not that there still isn't room for improvement, but sticking with something that requires a person (especially a shorter person like me) to contort his/her body in order to perform a piece just because that's what the organ builder is used to, well, that's rather inconsiderate IMHO.

Then there's the historic argument.

Michael