Musicians in Sussex can now get their hands on a man-made product that is replacing the traditional bow for stringed instruments.
Lewes-based violin dealers Academy Music is the first stockist in Sussex of a new type of carbon fibre bow.
Managing director Robert Haydon Clark said: "There has been a real need to find a good alternative to traditional bows. For almost 200 years, bows have been made from pernambuco wood, found only in a small region of Brazil.
"Pernambuco trees are now endangered and it is possible there might be a full ban, as with similar exotic wood.
Re-planting is under way to address the problem but bow makers estimate there will soon be a 20 to 30 year gap in supply while the trees mature.
"This will make the price of bows rocket and discourage new players from learning instruments. Carbon fibre bows are essential for the future of our art."
"The main problem with previous carbon fibre bows was they hadn't achieved the correct spring needed to tension the hair properly for good sound quality."
The new bows, produced by German company Arcus, are made from sheets of epoxy-impregnated carbon fibres.
Mr Haydon Clark said: "The Arcus bows have accurately mimicked the spring and have the necessary lightness and strength."
He was a member of the London Symphony Orchestra for 20 years, starting at the age of 21, when Andre Previn was its conductor.
He opened Academy Music in 1998 to stock a wide range of classical and modern string instruments.
The new bows are available for violin, cello and viola.
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