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WASHINGTON - Between them they have produced instruments used by some of the world's most famous musicians, including Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Pete Townshend and Paul Simon.
Now this group of guitar-makers have come together in an effort to preserve the threatened Alaskan forests which provide the timber
for a crucial part of their instruments. At the present rates of cutting, they say the old growth sitka spruce, so vital to the sound and performance of their guitars, could be gone in a decade.
"It's time for us to self-govern and take responsibility to get in there and say these practices have to change," said Bob Taylor, president of California-based Taylor Guitars, whose customers include Bryan Adams and Suzanne Vega.
"In reality, we are a small user [of sitka] but we have a really big voice and that is where it comes in. People show up when we show up."
Taylor, along with Fender, Martin and Gibson, are calling on the suppliers of sitka spruce, an extraordinarily strong, vibrant timber that is used for the sound boards of acoustic guitars, to apply for certification under the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
The FSC - founded by a coalition of environmental groups in the early 90s - demands that forests are managed according to the best scientific and environmental standards and that timber is harvested on a sustainable basis.
"We are seeking to partner with people closer to the forest that are trying to manage these valuable, precious resources more judiciously," said Chris Martin, chairman of Martin and Co.
The spruce used comes almost exclusively from the coastal temperate rainforest of southeast Alaska and Canada where logging over the past 100 years has all but depleted stocks. According to an analysis of the logging industry in the region carried out by Greenpeace, more than 80 per cent of the timber is shipped to Asia, where it is used mainly for building homes. The bulk of the remainder is used in the US for door and window frames.
Campaigners say the overwhelming majority of the timber from southeast Alaska is supplied by Sealaska, a co-operative of native Alaskans which has more than 17,000 members and which is the largest private landowner in the region.
Greenpeace last summer arranged a meeting between Sealaska and representatives from the four guitar companies. They are trying to persuade Sealaska to apply for FSC certification.
"I think they are interested in finding options that can keep them involved and also provide social and economic benefits," said Greenpeace's Scott Paul. Sitka spruce - Picea sitchensis - is the world's third tallest species of tree, after the coast redwood and coast douglas fir. Some of the oldest specimens are believed to be 700 years old while the tallest reach more than 90 metres. Only remnants of the original spruce forests remain.
An insight into the threat faced by the spruce of southeast Alaska can be seen by the history of the Adirondack spruce of the northeast United States, previously used by guitar-makers for the sound boards of acoustic guitars but all but decimated as a result of over-logging in the 1940s.
Mr Paul said: "Our coalition is starting with sitka spruce but in the future we hope to address other tree species under increasing threat."
Sitka Spruce
* Sitka spruce - Picea sitchensis - is the world's third tallest species of tree, after the coast redwood and coast douglas fir.
* Some of the oldest specimens are believed to be 700 years old.
* The tallest reach more than 90 metres.
* The sitka spruce used for guitars comes almost exclusively from the coastal temperate rainforest of southeast Alaska and Canada.
* Extensive logging during the past 100 years has all but depleted stocks.
* More than 80 per cent of the timber is shipped to Asia, where it is used mainly for building homes. The bulk of the remainder is used in the US for door and window frames.
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