Marimba

History:

The marimba is an instrument developed around the year 1910. People say that the marimba got it’s name by a goddess called Marimba, who made an instrument by hanging gourds below wooden bars. It is sometimes referred to as the source of the instrument’s name. The marimba started off as wooden bars laid over a whole in the ground struck with sticks. The Africans brought the instrument to South America and it was improved there. The early model of the marimba was called the marimbaphone. Europeans called it kaffir piano, while the Natives call it the malimba.

Description:

The marimba has thin bars, pipes, and it consists of strips of wood. It belongs to the percussion family like the drums. Large models of the marimba are called xylorimbas. The marimba can be played by four players. It is a modern instrument unlike the piano. It is played like the xylophone, and it is very similar to one. The marimba is a very popular instrument which many people like to play.

Sound:

The marimba sound like a xylophone, but it has a deeper sound; many people call it the deeper version of the xylophone. It has a loud sound which is achieved by it’s pipes. Many people describe it’s sound as a joyful sound, which is enjoyed by many.

How It Is Made:

Marimbas are made with rosewood bars. It’s bars are made with man made material which has characteristics of wood. It’s resonators are usually made of metal, but when they run out of metal it is sometimes made of paper tubes. Marimbas are easy instruments to build, and that is why people sometimes make their own.

Bibliography:

1.www.marimba.org

2. www.home.sprynet.com/˜gipbard.marimba/htm

3. The New Oxford Companion to Music pg.1129

4. Musical Instruments of the World pg.267

Done By:
Samar Al-Ansari
7C