Practice organs can have anywhere from 3 to 9 ranks. This pipe is alot like a single reed orchestral instrument. The wind flowing through the pipe vibrates a metal tongue, a strip of flat metal, against an open-faced shallot. This is not visible from the outside because these parts are contained in the boot, the bottom part of the pipe which rests on the wind chest. The sound is amplified by the resonator, the top, flared part of the pipe.
Pitch is determined by the length of the tongue.
They have a strong, penetrating tone. For a diagram, see the sound characteristics page. Reservoir This is a storage container for the wind. The top part of the container is expandable, like a fan or accordian. Weights or springs are used on the expandable part to keep the air under pressure.