User Guide

332 Chapter 22 EVB3
Percussion
Percussion is only available for the Upper manual—same as the original B3. The
percussion of an electro-mechanical organ is polyphonic, but is only (re)triggered after
all keys have been released. If you release all keys, new notes or chords will sound with
percussion. If you play legato, or sustain other notes on the Upper manual, no
percussion will be audible.
On the original B3, percussion is only available if the “B” preset key is selected (see
“Preset Keys and Morphing” on page 333). If you want this restriction to be simulated,
set the Perc parameter to Only B. You find this parameter in the Organ section. If you
always want percussion to be available, select Always.
Activate percussion by clicking the On button in the Percussion section, to the top-
right of the interface. The percussion is heard in the 4' register or in the 2 2/3' register, if
the 2nd/3rd button is set. Set the percussion decay time with Time, and set its level
with Vol. This improves on the B3, where Time and Vol could only be switched on/off,
whereas these parameters can be varied.
Note: Time has a maximum setting called Paradise. In this position, the percussion
doesn’t decay at all. The name is derived from a famous Jimmy Smith recording
“Groovin’ at Small’s Paradise,” where Jimmy used a B3 that had a defect in the
percussion trigger. The cool thing about this technical flaw is that one harmonic
sounds without Chorus-Vibrato, while the drawbar harmonics feature Chorus-Vibrato.
While this is very specialized, it is a nice inclusion, especially for jazz-oriented players.
The EVB3 percussion register can be played with velocity sensitivity, unlike the B3. Set
the percussion velocity sensitivity with Vel.
If you engage percussion on a B3, the volume of the normal, non-percussive registers is
reduced slightly. The Up Level parameter simulates this behavior, allowing you to
define the volume of the Upper manual, with percussion engaged.