The development of the JEUX SoundFont was mainly for my own satisfaction, but I have received many helpful and encouraging comments from organ enthusiasts and MIDI musicians. Some of these have been too good to keep to myself! I hope these brief quotations from user comments will convince those unfamiliar with the somewhat daunting technology of sound cards, MIDI, and soundfonts, to wade in. There is almost unlimited opportunity for musical creativity in this medium, and if you learn something about computers and the mathematics of sound along the way, so much the better!
"Just when I was beginning to despair about the appalling quality of "Church" organ MIDI voices (but not including Ralph van Zetten's worthy contribution, I hasten to add), I discovered your Jeux soundfonts and your beautiful and considered MIDI arrangements, all thanks to HammerSound. I really can't adequately express the joy and appreciation I feel from your efforts when listening to these works. As I two-finger type this, I am listening to your Bach and Daquin files and can say that I miss my CD player not one bit!... Sir, you are a Knight and a Gentleman!" (a treasured compliment from Colin Stevens, retired electronics engineer in England.)
"I've just downloaded your soundfont, and it seems very beautiful... I'm the director of an ensemble specializing in baroque music: of course, I often use organs for concerts and rehearsals. Unfortunately, here in Italy there are very beautiful ancient organs in terrible condition, no church has a little positif (very useful for me) and it's very expensive to rent..."
"JoyEUX!"
"I just wanted to send a brief note of thanks for the JEUX soundfont! It is without a doubt the finest collection of organ stops I've encountered."
"Let me say that your incredible work on this soundfont has given me renewed faith in humanity, a grudging acceptance of technology, a better sex life and has trimmed years off my waist. And that only having gotten through less than a third of it! I had to stop playing with it for a moment to email my sincere thanks for your work on this, the only absolutely beautiful pipeorgan sound font I have ever encountered... This is bloody great, I'm not going to get a damn thing done today except figure this baby out. Brilliant, and thank you." (This from an Englishman, sometimes organist, who signs himself "Saint Alphonso" of the "Crux of the Biscuit Ministries". He added more in a followup message:) "Without blathering on and on, just let me say I'm still on Cloud 9, and am pinching myself after having heard so many other embarrassingly bad organ soundfonts, and your attention to detail and obvious love of the instrument certainly rendered a wonderful result. Now if only my neighbors would understand... (the tutti's work quite well, thank you!)."
"Thank you! Never heard such incredible sound coming from my SB AWE64. As a lover of church organ (sound) and player of the instrument, the oddity of this enormous organ coming out of my computer is almost shocking. (From Marcel Berkien, Netherlands)
"The Real McCoy indeed!"