Draft:Decap organ
A Decap organ is a dance organ made by the Belgian company Decap Brothers Antwerp.[1] Decap organs are said to be the most high quality dance organs.[2]
Company History
[edit]In 1902, Aloïs Decap and his son Livien started a barrel organ company in the Essenstraat in Antwerp, which would later grow into one of the largest in Belgium.[citation needed] Initially they limited themselves to the revision of their own organs, then they started producing fairground organs.[citation needed]
Gradually the repertoire of their products became larger. Over the years they produced fairground organs, street organs, dance organs, electronic organs, and combinations of pipe and electronic organs.[citation needed] In 1933, accordions were introduced on the organs.[citation needed] In 1935, the first drum kit was placed visibly on the front.[citation needed] In 1936, saxophones were placed on the front.[citation needed]
In 1943, fans (Lees Exhousters) were used for the wind supply, and in 1950, the book wheel was introduced, in which a number of books were glued together, allowing a whole series of books to be played one after the other without anyone having to switch it over.[citation needed]
In 1953, electronic instruments were used for the first time and gradually the use of electronics became established in organ technology and electronic control systems were introduced.[citation needed]
The electronic organ that was built in until the 1970s was a Hammond organ that was specially modified by "Hammond" for Gebroeders Decap.[citation needed] The Hammond organ was therefore suitable for playing automatically on organ books.
In 1977, Daan van der Laar from the Netherlands designed an organ sound that was unique in its kind for that time. The electronics were based on the technology of the American organ builder Gulbransen, but the sound was better than that of the Gulbransen because gold contacts were used in the electronics. Of this, for that time, revolutionary organ, 38 were sold. Most in Belgium and the Netherlands.[citation needed]
Despite these modern techniques, the old pneumatics have always been present and since 1989 they have started building pipe organs again.[citation needed]
Models
[edit]Decap manufactured many models of dance organ, such as ones with 92, 72, and 121 keys.[3][4][5]
References
[edit]- ^ "Decap Jazz Organ". Fairground Follies. Retrieved 2025-06-27.
- ^ "Hidden Belgium: The last dance organ in Antwerp". The Brussels Times. Retrieved 2025-06-27.
- ^ "72-Key Decap – 'Pascal' – AFOM". Retrieved 2025-06-27.
- ^ "Fairground Follies - Antique Mechanical Music Museum - Sydney". www.fairgroundfollies.com. Retrieved 2025-06-27.
- ^ "121 key Gebr. Decap "De Kempenaer" | A C Pilmer Automatic Music Ltd". www.acpilmer.com. 2016-03-23. Retrieved 2025-06-27.