African Blackwood 

African Blackwood ( Dalbergia Melonoxyon ) is a member of the pea family and is very closely related to Brazilian rosewood, Cocobolo, and Tulipwood. It is often imagined to be a giant tree of the rain forest, but in fact it is quite a small tree, bearing a great resemblance to a large Whitethorn bush! It grows on the sparsely wooded grasslands of east Africa, where it is known as Mpingo and most of the wood I use comes from Tanzania and Mozambique via various European importers. It is slow growing, in common with other woods that are heavy and dense, and from the instrument makers point of view the small size of the trunk and its convoluted form make it difficult to cut suitable sizes from logs.  Mature trees are needed, and these are becoming scarcer.

One major problem is bush fires, which are becoming more and more common as the human population in these areas increases. The old trees can survive quite an intense fire, but the saplings are killed. It is thought, though, that the fires may cause some damage to the timber of the older trees, and that perhaps this may appear later as cracks in finished instruments. If a crack appears in your flute it's probably only cold comfort to think that it had its origin in an African bush fire many many years ago!
The Government in Tanzania is beginning to take steps to replenish the dwindling stocks of mature Mpingo trees, and hopefully, in the not too distant future, Hamilton flutes will be made from blackwood from managed plantations.