Timbers used to build musical instruments come from different types of forests - tropical, temperate and boreal - and the truth is that the best quality music wood comes from old-growth. Walk through any music store and the instruments you'll see represent a virtual who's who of exotic and valuable timber species from the four-corners of the globe: spruce from Alaska, mahogany and rosewood from South America, ebony from Africa and a host of other lesser known species. Unfortunately, unbridled demand for forest products on global markets has led to the destructive and often illegal logging of the forests where these species are found. Global demand has driven many species to the point of commercial extinction and others are becoming increasingly scarce-as are the plants and animals that share their environment. Today less than 10 percent of the Earth's land area remains as intact forest landscapes. Music wood is only a small part of this problem, but it can be a big part of the solution. If you make, buy or play musical instruments, so can you.

The time to act is now! Today, just 8 percent of the world's intact forest landscapes are strictly protected and many regions where logging takes place still do not have enough certified forests to supply instrument manufacturers. As a result, many species have been exploited past the point of no return. But market demand for good wood is slowly growing and more and more lands are being FSC certified each year, bringing hope for the future of music species and the forests they represent.