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Dear Darko -
Bubinga is Central African, Purpleheart from the Guiana's (as well as
Snakewood and Letterwood, rare Moraceae of which the heartwood is used for
making string instruments, particularly the bows). I do not know the two
others, Koa can be from anywhere (language?) and Padauk sounds perhaps Asian.
However, most of these precious woods are very hard and grow very slowly, so
they are nowhere cultivated commercially, let alone sustainably.
Their use in low quantities and high quality (but not in a violin factory
producing tens of thousands of "instruments" a year, of course) can only help
the conservation of the rain forests because it creates another lobby
(musicians and music lovers) who may become conscient that it is intact rain
forests which may provide such noble materials in small quantities on
condition to be managed for complete biocomplexity ("biodiversity")
conservation over large enough surfaces.
This is, lower down in the forest, the counterpart of our canopy farming
ideas upstairs ("bio-upstairs"). Hope you may send this information on to the
interested parties. Bye!
Prof. Dr. Roelof A.A. Oldeman (Silviculture & Forest Ecology)