Since acquiring Duke Guitars in 2021, we've been toying with the idea of launching a line of instruments that are 100% made in Germany. Just in time for the Guitar Summit, we're finally introducing the first models of our new Duke Pro Acoustic Series. 

The idea behind this series is to offer handcrafted guitars made in Germany using wood from our own stock. These guitars are built by master luthier Martin Bretscher in collaboration with the Duke product management team. The wood comes from our own inventory, which we source from forests in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, have it cut, and then store it ourselves. 

The construction of these instruments is just as exciting as the resources we've invested in them. Not only did we commission Martin Bretscher to build the guitars, but we also developed a process with him that allows us to work in a particularly cost- and resource-efficient way. 

With the first models, we're offering a selection of around nine instruments, which we are selling through our German and Austrian retail partners. 

The Duke Pro Acoustic Series models feature the typical Duke auditorium look. However, we completely avoid tropical woods and instead rely on high-quality local alternatives. This brings woods like service tree, wild service tree, cherry, and whitebeam into play—the latter, by the way, is the Tree of the Year 2024. All of these are native to Central European forests and are excellently suited for guitar making. Some of the woods are refined using rECOtimber, our in-house thermal optimization process, which is also used in our rECO series for Baton Rouge and La Mancha. 

We've brought a small selection to the Summit, which you're of course welcome to try out extensively. 

Presenting new products at trade shows always has the added benefit of allowing us to gather direct