Traditionally, tropical woods such as ebony and rosewood are used in string instrument making.

 

Due to the worldwide overexploitation, the stocks of most tropical wood species are declining rapidly. The quality of the woods used for stringed instruments is becoming increasingly poor, and there is a threat of their complete disappearance. The result is ever stricter import and trade regulations such as CITES.

 

That is why Sonowood was developed. Local woods such as spruce, maple and walnut from sustainable forestry are modified. Thanks to environmentally friendly production, there are no legal restrictions or ethical or moral concerns. The customer benefits from a high-quality material that achieves the highly valued physical-mechanical properties of tropical wood.

 

Spruce, maple and walnut are pre-treated with a skin-friendly and non-toxic excipient and then compacted in a press to one third of their original volume. The technology for this was developed at the ETH Zurich, today Sonowood is manufactured by Swiss Wood Solutions in Switzerland. After modification, the woods are particularly hard and solid. In combination with a high speed of sound, a new high-performance material is created which is superior to tropical woods in sound, hardness and reproducibility. Low damping and high sound conduction speed ensure outstanding sound characteristics. Your instrument will be richer in overtones and faster in response after the changeover. As a sustainable material, Sonowood contributes to the preservation of biodiversity and is constantly available.

All components for string instruments can be produced from Sonowood. We offer everything for violin, viola and cello, from tailpiece and chinrests, pegs and end buttons to fingerboards, nuts and saddles. The handmade sets not only ensure a perfect sound experience, but also support the musician in playing. They do not press on the neck and lie well in the hand when tuning. We also pay attention to the correct weighting, strength and size as well as the interaction of the individual components.

Special models can also be adapted and manufactured according to individual wishes.

More Information about https://swisswoodsolutions.ch/de/sonowood/