Draft Rules are Tricky for Touring
In the post-September 11 atmosphere of heightened security, touring orchestras have faced a number of potentially challenging new travel rules,
from limits on carry-on items to restrictions on bows made of rare
woods. Yet another rule under consideration could place a burden on
orchestras touring internationally. In an effort to improve security
at our nation’s ports of entry, the U.S. Department of Homeland
Security is proposing new, potentially cumbersome documentation
requirements for all items shipped by cargo. While the draft rule
would apply only to cargo shipped by sea-going vessels, DHS aims to
eventually extend the rule to cargo shipped by air and ground. The
League has submitted comments calling on U.S. Customs and Border
Protection to ensure that new rules will not hamper international
cultural exchange.
Read League Comments to DHS
Please take note of a new document to have on hand while traveling internationally. A letter from the U.S. Department of the Interior officially confirms that finished bows made of pernambuco wood can be transported across international borders without burdensome certification requirements. This June, the international community considered an endangered species proposal that could have required musicians to obtain special permits before traveling internationally with instruments made with the Brazilian wood pernambuco - commonly used in crafting fine bows and other instrument parts. The League partnered with U.S. bow makers, NAMM: The International Music Products Association, and the American Federation of Musicians to successfully protect the ability of orchestras to travel internationally with their instruments. The letter can be helpful for musicians to carry while traveling with bows as they pass through customs.
Orchestras and individual musicians touring internationally may continue to travel with their bows, after winning an exemption during negotiations at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). The international community met over the past two weeks to determine whether to include the Brazilian pernambuco tree on the endangered species list. Most fine bows used by string musicians are made from pernambuco wood. Negotiators settled on adding the tree to the endangered species list, but applying the listing only to "logs, sawn wood, veneer sheets...," specifying that finished bows that are transported internationally would not be subject to cumbersome CITES permit and certification requirements.
Negotiations are underway to determine whether the pernambuco wood that is used to craft most fine bows will be added to the endangered species list—and whether strict restrictions on transporting the wood internationally will only apply to the actual lumber, or might also be applied to items made from pernambuco, including bows used by traveling musicians. The League, in partnership with the American Federation of Musicians, weighed in with the U.S. representatives to the international convention, calling for responsible conservation efforts that will also protect the ability of musicians to travel and perform internationally with their instruments.
Read League/AFM Comments 23.05 Kb