GrandOrgue Combination System Explained: Generals, Divisionals & Sequencer

A combination action is a memory system that stores stop registrations so you can recall them instantly with a single piston press. GrandOrgue’s combination system is one of its most powerful features: it gives you generals, divisionals, a performance sequencer, flexible scope modes, and full MIDI control — all without touching the mouse mid-piece.

Generals vs Divisionals: The One-Sentence Version

Generals store and recall the stops of the entire organ at once; divisionals store and recall the stops of one manual division only (for example, just the Great).

This mirrors how real pipe organ consoles work. A general piston is your “scene change” button: one press swaps the registration of every division simultaneously — ideal for the big structural moments of a piece, like the move from a quiet verse to a full final chorus. A divisional piston is a surgical tool: it changes only one keyboard’s stops, leaving the others exactly as they are. Organists use divisionals to build a crescendo on one manual while an accompaniment registration holds steady on another.

In practice, most players set up a handful of generals as their main registration landmarks (pp, mp, mf, f, ff) and use divisionals for fine-tuning individual manuals within those landmarks. If the sample set you loaded does not include combination pistons on its screens, open the Panel menu: GrandOrgue lets you add generals, divisionals, and couplers as floating panels for any organ, even ones whose creator never built them in.

How to Store and Recall a Combination

The workflow is the same for generals and divisionals:

1. Draw the stops you want (by clicking them, or via your MIDI console).
2. On the combination setter panel, press Set.
3. Press the general or divisional piston where you want to store it.

From now on, pressing that piston recalls the registration instantly. Pressing GC (General Cancel) clears all stops — the organist’s panic button and a genuinely useful way to reset between pieces. Combinations are saved with the organ when you choose File > Save, so your registrations are still there next time you load the same sample set.

The Sequencer: Your Hands-Free Page Turner for Registrations

The sequencer is the feature that turns GrandOrgue from a practice instrument into a performance instrument. Instead of hunting for the right piston mid-piece, you arrange your registrations in playing order and step through them with Previous and Next.

The sequencer panel offers these controls:

• Previous / Next Memory – step backward or forward one registration.
• Set – store the current stops into the displayed memory slot.
• Current – show the active memory slot.
• +10 / -10 – jump ten slots at a time through large registration lists.
• __0 to __9 – direct-access buttons for numbered slots.

A typical performance setup: store your registrations in order (slot 0 = opening, slot 1 = first build, and so on), then map a single foot piston or MIDI button to Next Memory. You never look at the screen again — each press advances the registration exactly when the music demands it. For church services and concerts, this is how players handle pieces with a dozen registration changes and no assistant.

Scope Modes: Regular, Scoped, and Full

GrandOrgue’s setter panel includes scope buttons that control how much of the organ a stored combination remembers. This is the part most beginners miss, and it is genuinely useful:

• Regular – the memory slot remembers the state of all stops and couplers across the whole organ (except any the sample-set creator locked permanently on or off).
• Scoped – the combination only looks at a subset of stops that you define with the Scope button. Select Scope, turn on exactly the stops you want the piston to control (for example, every stop of the Great division), press Set, and from then on that piston behaves like a divisional for your chosen group — even on organs that have no divisionals built in.
• Full – like Regular, but it ignores the sample set’s permanently-on/off locks and lets you change those stops too.

Scoped mode is the power user’s trick: it lets you build custom “divisionals” for any arbitrary group of stops — say, all the reeds of the organ, or the entire pedal division — regardless of what the sample-set creator provided.

Mapping Pistons to MIDI: Hands on Your Console

Every piston, sequencer button, and setter control in GrandOrgue can be driven from physical MIDI hardware. Right-click any piston, choose the MIDI configuration dialog, press Listen for Event, and press the physical button or foot piston on your console. GrandOrgue learns the MIDI message instantly.

This is where a real console transforms the experience: generals on thumb pistons under the manuals, sequencer Next/Previous on toe studs, and General Cancel on a dedicated piston. If you are building or buying hardware, our MIDI pedalboards for GrandOrgue guide covers the options. And remember to save the organ after configuring — unsaved MIDI mappings are lost when GrandOrgue closes.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a general and a divisional piston?

A general piston stores and recalls stops for the whole organ; a divisional piston stores and recalls stops for one manual division only. Use generals for large registration changes and divisionals for adjusting a single keyboard without disturbing the rest.

How do I step through registrations during a performance?

Use the sequencer: store your registrations in order with the Set button, then use Previous and Next Memory to move through them. Map Next Memory to a foot piston or MIDI button so you can advance registrations without taking your hands off the keys.

What does the Scoped mode do?

Scoped mode limits a combination piston to only the stops you selected with the Scope button — for example, just the Great division. It lets you create custom division-like pistons for any group of stops, even on sample sets that have no divisionals.

Can I add combination pistons to a sample set that has none?

Yes. Open the Panel menu and add the generals, divisionals, or sequencer panels. GrandOrgue provides these controls independently of the sample set’s own screens.

Do my combinations survive a restart?

Yes, as long as you save the organ (File > Save) after storing them. MIDI mappings to physical pistons are saved the same way.

Keep Exploring

Now that your registrations are under control, put them to work: build a physical console around them with our MIDI pedalboard guide, or practice your new piston technique on the free Friesach sample set — 44 stops by Piotr Grabowski, an ideal organ for learning the combination system.