A doctor has embarked on a project that will allow people to play Maltese historic pipe organs on their keyboards at home.

Amateur organist Mark Bugeja, 52, is recording the sounds of historic organs in churches around Malta and Gozo.

Each individual note is then digitised and can be played electronically through a computer or laptop with the help of software that can be downloaded for free, namely jOrgan and GrandOrgue.

Each organ has its own character, with identifiable characteristics

Through this software, various organs and harpsichords that already exist in digital format can be played without having to use the actual instruments, which are not only expensive but, at times, out of bounds for players because of their historical value.

“Buying an actual organ would cost some €20,000. Through this project, children or others who want to start learning the organ can use inexpensive keyboards and still hear the actual sounds of the historic organs,” Dr Bugeja said at the Ibraġġ parish church, where he plays the organ every Sunday.

Fifty-five historic pipe organs have been documented across Malta and Gozo but only 10 have been restored.

The sounds of the first organ that Dr Bugeja recorded pipe by pipe – the 1827 Balzan parish organ – have just been uploaded on the internet.

Dr Bugeja is now working on the 1775 Naxxar parish church organ and a 17th century organ that used to be found at St Paul’s Anglican Pro-Cathedral in Valletta.

“Each organ has its own character, with identifiable characteristics. When I sample these organs I include the clicks of the keys and the sounds of the stops or sliders – which can also be switched off by the player when using this virtual organ.

“Through this project we can also make up for mechanical problems that some organs have, like the one in the Tarxien parish church, which I have already sampled,” he said, noting that next month he will head to Gozo to record and digitise the organs of Fontana and Nadur.

Dr Bugeja spends hours sampling organ notes, which he passes to sound engineer Panos Ghekas to process for the software.

This is being done on a voluntary basis and the men have so far covered the expenses out of their own pockets.

In the meantime, they are looking for people to sponsor and donate to the project to enable them to carry on.

Digitising the sound of the 10 restored organs would cost some €92,000 while for the whole project the figure would go up to about €325,000.

Apart from providing learners with the opportunity to hear the authentic sounds of the historic organs, this project could also help researchers abroad as they would be able to access the organs virtually.

The open source software jOrgan and GrandOrgue can be downloaded for free from www.sourcefoerge.net.

The sounds of the Balzan organ can be downloaded from http://maltesepipeorgans.webs.com/downloads-1

Dr Bugeja can be contacted at marcusfb@gmail.com.