2018 AGS Magazine

world, keep your eyes and ears
open, and smell the air. Something
is definitely at work and it
is up to you to tune into it. Each
walk is a unique experience, a
sensual learning adventure and a
spiritual growth opportunity. We
are all connected to this world
and each other. To what degree
is up to each of us to explore and
develop. That’s the beauty of it
all. We are all different and our
quests and visions not only do not
have to be the same, it is usually
more exciting and flavorful when
they aren’t. We can create endless
sensual and spiritual harmonies!
My day job is to travel around
the world and find the coolest hardwoods. My
job is getting easier in my old age as now I am
usually contacted by people who have found
me in their quest to sell an unusual product at a
premium price. Although my 60 something body
doesn’t recover from jetlag and long flights as
fast as it used to (this is not really a complaint
but more of an observation), no one who is
privileged to do what I do should be entitled to
complain. I do have several guidelines I follow
such as avoiding areas patrolled by twelve year
olds with automatic weapons or vicious drug
gangs, civil wars, disease epidemics, etc. These
rules do leave out some regions with really cool
wood such as Persian Walnut and Madagascar
Rosewood, but there are over 70,000 catalogued
species of trees in the world so there should be
some in the more friendly regions of the world.
A great place to start a tone wood quest is in
the Alps for Spruce. There are several reasons
this region should be among the best regions to
source top wood. In this day and age of consumerism,
conservation and sustainability should be
our primary concern when it comes to sourcing
our resources. In order to harvest
trees in Western Europe sawmills
must comply with PEFC standards.
These are similar to FSC guidelines.
A PEFC harvested tree must
come from a sustainably managed
woodlot where an individual log
can be traced back to the stump.
Removal of these trees cannot
impact erosion or water quality.
Strict government oversight and
enforcement ensures compliance
with these laws.
OK, we can feel environmentally
good about this Spruce but is that
enough? Well it would be nice if
the sound is good and projects to
the listener. It does! Think Stradivarius
violins. These Spruce trees grow very
slowly as they struggle to survive harsh winters
and hostile terrain. They produce beautiful, tight
grained even-colored wood that when quarter
sawn displays a lustrous silk pattern. These pieces
not only make tops that are beautiful to look
at but also project an incredibly sweet sound
from the body of the instrument. Pow!
Unfortunately, insects are outlaws and Spruce
trees are a target for new generations of beetles
that are moving into regions that used to be
protected by harsh winters but are now becoming
milder. Some trees die while others produce
gum pockets to heal themselves. The Spruce is
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