Welcome on the "SubMat4Music", a website dedicated to people interested in musical instrument building, modification of wood or especially in thermally treated wood.
About SubMat4Music
The network project SubMat4Music brings together scientists with large expertise in modifying wood, tone wood manufacturers and dealers and Instrument builders to make use of modified wood. Together, we want to create new acoustic possibilities and to exchange experience within the network. Our mission is to reproduce and improve acoustic properties of tonewoods and to create long-lasting products with a high customer acceptance. Our Vision is to address technical solutions within the network, exchange knowledge between science and application and to develop sustainable solutions.

Building musical instruments is one of the oldest crafts with a huge cultural and traditional heritage. Since ancient times tropical woods have always played a big role in building parts for all kinds of musical instruments. The overall superior qualities compared to woods of our moderate climate zone were always preferred. The use of tropical woods became a long time historical tradition. Extensive world wide use and well-known clearcutting of original jungle as well as its global use for all kinds of economic reasons has led to a worldwide constant threat of the diversity of species. Since January 2017 new trade regulations for over 500 species of animals and plants are in force. They were added to the list of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) - and since then protected timber has become an increasingly world wide issue for building and trading musical instruments
As a solution for this problem, modified domestic wood has been proven as a good substitute material for wood from protected species. Since we identified a threatening of the existence of small and medium instrument building enterprises due to abandonment of tropical wood our motivation is to develop substitutes in the form of modified domestic woods.
The Network is coordinated and managed by Professor Alexander Pfriem's Lab Group at the University of Applied Sciences in Eberswalde, HNEE. It develops and analyses materials and the needed processes to produce thermally treated wood. Also the acoustic properties of the instruments made of these materials will be analysed. Task of the instrument builders is the processing of the modified wood as well as the determination of the instrument's sound quality and the implementation of the modification processes. Tone wood manufacturers and dealers select the raw materials, deal with the processability of raw material and also apply the modification processes
News
Radio Broadcast about Violin Making in Context of Environmental Protection
Thermally modified pianos
New Wood Modification Project
TU-Dresden receives award for modified soundwood
Angela Waltner: ‘Reproduction of classical instruments with modified wood’
Network portrait
The Network consists out of two research institutes, a plant manufacturer, a polymer chemistry specialist, a tonewood supplier, a violin maker and 5 guitar builders.
Since 1830 Eberswalde has a tradition of forestry and wood science research. In 1992, the University of Applied Sciences in Eberswalde was established.
- use of modified wood in musical instruments
- sound characteristics of modified wood
The Technical University Dresden was founded 1828 as a technical school, and received the status of Technical University in 1961.
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- Research in the field of material development and processing
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- Materials on a lignocellulosic basis as well as other natural fibers
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- Design and manufacture of differently structured materials
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- Technological aspects of further processing and plant and mechanical engineering as well as tool development
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- One focus is on the reimbursement of existing materials such as native wood for application-related property modification.
Plant manufacturers
Violin Makers
Frank Frobeen
Guitar Builders
Guitar Builders
Polymer chemistry
Research and development work is carried out for industrial partners from the automotive, ship and railway vehicle construction, aerospace and construction and furniture industries. In addition, InnoMat GmbH participates in publicly funded projects on innovative materials.
Guitar Builders
Guitar Builders
The development and application of thermally optimized timber species for guitar building is led by CEO Gunther Reinhardt since 30 years. The cooperation of Reinhardt GmbH and HNE Eberswalde enabled Reinhardt GmbH to build its first prototypes and series from 100% thermally modified timber based on results of scientific investigations. As participant of the SubMat4Msuic network Reinhardt GmbH is one of the driving forces in the development and optimization of acoustic and classical guitars.
Tonewood suppliers
deutsches-tonholz, Andreas Großer Tonholzhandel
Andreas Großers offers meet special customer requirements for timber and dimensions.
Tonewood suppliers
Tonewood Switzerland, Florinett AG
Guitar Builders
Supporter
This website is a part of the project "SubMat4Music - Identification and development of the potential of European woods for musical instrument manufactoring", funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs (BMWi) and Energy via ZIM (Zentrales Innovationsprogramm Mittelstand), a funding programme for small and medium-sized enterprises (funding registration number 16KN072601).
Contents of this website reflect the views of the authors only, and the BMWi cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Contact
Lothar Clauder M.Sc.
Working Group Chemistry and Physics of Wood
Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development
Tel.: 033 34 657-379
Fax: 033 34 657-372
EMail: Internet: http://www.hnee.de/chemie/
Map: http://osm.org/go/0MemAsqY0--?m=