Wed Jan 12, 2022 7:49 pm
Steve,
That is a very interesting point. I, too, have bought a lot of sample sets (only about half as many as you) but although I would be interested in this one, at that price point I don't think I am likely to buy it. I was eagerly awaiting Nancy, but when it came out it was about 50% more expensive than I expected and even with the current 15% discount I can't justify it, particularly as there are other instruments on my wish list.
Clearly the price must influence the number of sales, and when the profit per unit is multiplied by the number of units there must be a sweet spot, but I don't know how you would go about establishing where this is and therefore how to set a suitable price.
I would imagine there are some users who want a single large organ that does everything, or else a few more varied instruments to cover the types of music that they play (French Romantic, Baroque, American Classic...). For them the hardware is the main cost, even if they end up spending a couple of thousand pounds / dollars / euros on sample sets to get their ideal home organ.
Then there are others like me who are more interested in the individual sound of specific historical organs, for instance how does Schnitger compare with Silbermann, and how do North German Baroque organs compare with Central German, or how did the ideas of Cavaille-Coll develop over the course of his career, or which organ is closest to the one that the composer would have written for (early vs. late Buxtehude vs. Bruhns)? We probably end up spending more on sample sets altogether, and continue to do so, but are probably not prepared to pay so much for each of them.
I have no idea which group makes up the bulk of Hauptwerk users, or even if this is a valid way of categorising them.
Then there are some sample sets that stand out from the rest as special in terms of quality of recording, historical importance and how rewarding they are to play, and I have not regretted spending more than I usually would have. Rotterdam Main, St. Bavokerk Haarlem, St Martinikerk Groningen and Caen are examples that immediately spring to mind. But there are others, equally special but much cheaper, that every Hauptwerk user should consider, such as St. Mary-le-Bow.
I am looking forward to seeing where Blackburn Cathedral fits in.