It is neither nostalgia for the past nor the aural equivalent of rose-colored glasses that account for such r e a c t i o n s . T h e i n s t r u m e n t s o f H i l d e b r a n d t , t h e w o n d e r f u l l y i n c i s i v e i n s t r u m e n t s o f h i s m e n t o r, G o t t f r i e d Silbermann, and a host of other organs from the same period are indisputably alive, and their specific character and behavior have an almost magical way of animating the music played upon them. Such instruments are also in a curious way democratic: one does not need to be among the most skillful players in the world in order to make memorable music on these organs. They respond both to the seasoned artist and to the village organist, and everyone who plays them sounds better than they would sound on most organs. These are not organs only for the specially gifted, but rather they are organs of such surpassing quality that they allow a transcendent musical experience to be the norm instead of the exception.
S u c h m u s i c a l i n s t r u m e n t s w e l l r e f l e c t t h e o v e r a l l g o a l s b e h i n d t h e c o n c e p t o f t h e C o n s t e l l a t i o n C e n t e r, where the quality of the musical environment – its proportions, materials, visual and acoustical propert i e s , a l o n g w i t h t h e i n s t r u m e n t s p l a c e d i n i t – i s t o b e g i v e n h i g h e s t p r i o r i t y. T h e s e o r g a n s w i l l a l s o s h o w u s t h e w a y t o b u i l d n e w i n s t r u m e n t s o f c o m p a r a b l e q u a l i t y, i f w e p a y a t t e n t i o n a n d l e a r n f r o m w h a t t h e y have to say to us. They will be our guide, and they will help us achieve the vision of realizing in instruments yet to be born the qualities that move us so at Naumburg, Störmthal, and in other places where Johann Sebastian Bach worked and – one may dare to say – was similarly moved.
William Porter