How to Buy a Marimba

Marimbas originated in South Africa before traveling through Central America and arriving in North America in the early 20th century. As a member of the percussion family, marimbas started as part of an orchestra. With the advances in the sound and tones of the marimba, it is also used as a stand alone instrument.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

1. Decide who plays the marimba to come up with the correct size of frame. If a single adult plays a marimba, you can buy the more attractive solid wood frame. However, if a younger person who is still growing is the primary musician or if a variety of people expect to play the instrument, plan to buy a marimba with an adjustable frame.
2. Think about the range you want from a marimba, which ranges from 4 to 5.5 octaves. The most common range tends to be 4.3 octaves. The range affects the overall resonance.
3. Look at the bars or keys of a marimba. Arranged like a piano, marimba keys have accidentals raised vertically that overlap the natural keys. Bars made from rosewood are found on most instruments, although marching bands may use marimbas with synthetic bars.
4. Listen to the sound and tone. You should hear changes in the sound quality according to the mallet used. Resonators, varying lengths of aluminum or brass tubes hanging below each bar, contribute to the richness of the sound. Manufacturers differ in the shaping of resonators. Malletech bends the ends of too long tubes found on higher octave marimbas. Adams and Yamaha use large box-shaped bottoms for those particular resonators. Marimba One widens the diameter of the resonators and curves the shape.
5. Buy cases if you plan to travel with your marimba. Marimbas are burdensome instruments to move and require shock absorbent cases. Plan on eight cases for a standard marimba. This is a good time to check on the difficulty of set up and tear down for your marimba.
6. Play a marimba by striking the keys with yarn or cord covered mallets. You should buy a variety of marimba mallets for different tones.
7. Ask about the pricing. Needless to say, marimbas are expensive. Some manufacturers offer special deals for institutions like schools. Others help by offering financing. Make certain the customer service is good. A large number of marimbas are purchased directly from manufacturers over the Internet. You should ask as many questions as you want and expect to receive timely, helpful responses. Service should continue after purchase with a warranty that could include free bar exchange and tuning in the first year.

Tips & Warnings

• Some popular manufacturers of marimbas are Marimba One, Malletech, Yamaha and Adams.