There is a present and immediate threat that the rare Brazilian wood used in the making of bows for stringed instruments is about to be listed under the highest level of protection.
Eva-Maria Tomasi of the Berlin Philharmonic outlines the likely consequences:
There is a possibility that Pernambuco will be uplisted to Appendix I of CITES, the highest level of protection. If a species is listed in Appendix I, international trade – including in processed form – is generally prohibited. There would be very few exceptions, strictly regulated and requiring permits.
What would such an uplisting mean for an orchestra?
Aside from bows becoming unsellable and untradeable, musicians who already own bows would be severely affected – particularly when travelling. Each musician would require their own CITES document for their bow, presented and stamped at each border crossing. Imagine the bureaucratic effort if an orchestra with 70-80 string players travels abroad. Whether sufficient personnel or practical implementation would even be available is doubtful. I can barely imagine how we’d continue touring with the orchestra under such conditions.
Let’s avoid misunderstandings: conservation is one of the great challenges of our time, a goal we fully share, particularly regarding Pernambuco. That’s why we support the IPCI’s mission, aiming to protect this special wood while enabling its controlled, sustainable musical use. Together with the IPCI, we believe these goals can coexist. We’re also concerned about the future: if Pernambuco is given higher protection, no good new bows could be made—for any string instrument. That would create a huge problem for future generations of musicians and for the art of string-playing as a whole. Brazil has already agreed to an uplisting to Appendix I. We sincerely hope this classification doesn’t happen.
Continues here.
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