"All one has to do is hit the right keys at the right time and the instrument plays itself."
J. S. Bach, composer and organist (attributed)
Long before the development of the pipe organ, its essential musical element—a set of pipes of different sizes that resonate at different pitches when air is passed through them—existed in the form of the syrinx. This simple instrument was used widely throughout the eastern Mediterranean region.
However, in 240 B.C.E., Ktesibios (c. 285-222 B.C.E.), a Greek engineer, developed a way of supplying a steady flow of air to the pipes. He attached them to a closed box into which air was pumped using pressurized water, creating and maintaining steady air pressure in the box. The pipes were opened or closed to the air source by a simple switch system operated from a keyboard. This device was originally called hydraulis, later organum, and produced loud sounds, clearly audible outdoors and ideal for use at games and processions. The instrument appears in paintings, mosaics, and writings throughout Byzantium.
The pipe organ is the oldest musical instrument still used in classical music. It was developed in the Byzantine Empire, and was adopted by the Christian church in the first century C.E. The hydraulic system was replaced by bellows in the following century.
