marimba

Marimba is one of many African names for the xylophone, and, because African instruments bearing this name frequently have a tuned calabash resonator for each wooden bar, some ethnomusicologists use the name marimba to distinguish gourd-resonated from other xylophones.

SHAPIRO: In Guatemala, today marks the official celebration of its national instrument. The marimba is a symbol of pride and resistance there. NPR's Neda Ulaby spoke with Guatemalans living in the United States about what the marimba means to them.

The central portions of these bars on a marimba are considerably hollowed out, while those of a xylophone are wavy. Comparing the sounds, the marimba has a soft and mellow tone that sounds like it could meld with wind instruments.

The marimba is a type of idiophone. Today, the marimba is used as a solo instrument, or in ensembles like orchestras, marching bands (typically as a part of the front ensemble), percussion ensembles, brass and concert bands, and other traditional ensembles.

Until they gets a really really tiny. Little stubby. Ones down here there's it's part it's very very.

The instrument can be performed solo, with an ensemble, band or orchestra. People play it in all genres of music including classical, jazz and rock n roll. I should mention that a person does not have to read or study music to play the marimba.

A piano can be mellow and can represent contentment or, from another angle, romance. French horns represent nobility, accomplishment, loneliness, and solitude. The trumpet, trombone, and other brass instruments represent excitement and energy.

2) Marimba is a compound word, that combines two words from the Bantu languages in Africa: 'ma', meaning 'many', and 'rimba', meaning 'single bar xylophone'. 3) Xylophones and similar instruments (like the marimba) date back to the 13th century in Africa. There's an African origin story concerning its creation.

Beneath the tone plates of a marimba, metal resonator pipes are affixed. Attached to every tone plate is one pipe, which makes the note resonate fully when the bar is hit with a mallet. The length of the resonator pipe also changes depending on the pitch of the tone plate. The lower the note, the longer.

The marimba has a two-level keyboard, similar to a piano's division of black and white keys, allowing the full chromatic range to be represented. The most common orchestral marimba is four octaves, and the solo marimba is between four-and-a-third and five octaves.

It's made of wooden bars, oriented similar to a piano, and has metal tubes underneath the bars called resonators, which help amplify the sound. The marimba can get a wide range of timbres, from hard a sharp to warm and rich, based on different mallets that the performer has at their disposal.

The Marimba in its simplest form originated among primitive men long ago. It was one of the earliest melodic instruments made by man and references suggest it was widespread throughout Asia and Africa.