A DETAILED DESCRIPTION A N D A C O U S T I C A L S T U D Y
O F THE M A R I M B A A N D X Y L O P H O N E
by G e n e L. Stoutmeyer
N. T. S. U.
Music Department
Denton, Texas
THE MARIMBA AND XYLOPHONE
The purpose of this study is to determine objectively the dif-
ference in tone quality between the marimba and the xylophone. Per-
cussionists attribute a mellow sound to the marimba and a harsh or
brittle sound to the xylophone. The author hopes that an acoustical
study of the respective tones of the two instruments will reveal the
probable reasons for the difference in tone quality.
To discuss the different acoustical properties of the marimba and
.xylophone one must have as complete a description of the two in-
struments as possible. According to the New College Encyclopedia of
Music, "xylophone literally means wood sound; and is a percussion
instrument similar to the glockenspiel only with wooden bars rather
than steel". The same source lists the marimba as a "type of xylophone
with gourds or resonators under the bars". 1 This information aids in
the visual recognition of the instruments, but there is need for a much
better distinction than this.
It is not too difficult to locate an instrument with wooden bars,
but not all instruments with wooden bars look alike. The marimba is
always built with a resonator under each bar.
Today, resonators are made of metal and are tubular in shape.
"A resonator is a hollow chamber that sustains and amplifies a
tone once the bar has been struck. Whether the hollow cham-
ber is a tube, a gourd or a wooden box the function of the
chamber is that of a resonator. "2
The xylophone may or may not be resonated. Many exampies can
be found for resonated and unresonated xylophones.
Although both instruments have wooden bars, closer examination
reveals a marked difference. The xylophone bar is very stout and thick
compared to its length. See figure 1.
(side view of xylophone bar)
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The marimba bar is quite thin in comparison to its length. See
figure 2.
Fig. 2
(side view of marimba bar)
Some approximate measurements of corresponding bars of both
instruments are represented on the following chart.
MARIMBA XYLOPHONE
WIDTH THICKNESS LENGTH WIDTH THICKNESS LENGTH
2.232 .325 35.6 Cl 1.460 .620 36.1
1.940 .400 29.5 C2 1.460 .695 28.0
1.720 .549 24.3 C3 1.410 .719 31.5
1.955 .390 32.1 G1 1.452 .719 31.7
1.690 .496 26.3 G2 1.435 .805 24.1
1.650 .614 21.1 G3 1.435 .844 16.9
Fig. 3
(Dimensions in centimeters taken from the two instruments used in this study.)
Richardson found that when the heavier xylophone bar is struck
the most prominent overtone produced was the note at the twelfth
above the fundamental. The predominant overtone produced by
striking the marimba bar was found to be two full octaves above the
fundamental. 3 When in doubt of an instrument classification, one can
place a finger lightly on the middle of a bar and strike it at the string
hole with a mallet. If a note two octaves above the bar is detected it
can be assumed that the instrument is a marimba.
Another distinguishing factor is the way in which sound is
produced. Both instruments are struck, of course, but with different
types of mallets. "The xylophone sound is achieved by hard mallets of
plastic and w o o d and is described as harsh, brittle, glass-like, soloistic
and non-blending."4
A different set of mallets is used in conjunction with the marimba.
"The marimba sound is achieved by soft yarn-covered or rubber tip-
ped mallets and is described as mellow, smooth, organ-like, blending
and rich. ''s
To discuss melodic or pitch range as a discerning factor is of little
value. These instruments can be found in almost any range from two
and one half octaves to four and a third octaves. In recent years bass
marimbas have been manufactured extending the range possibilities
even further. Generally the marimba is pitched one octave lower than
the xylophone.
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The actual pitch produced by the instrumentcan be used to help
differentiatebetweenthe two. "Marimba notes are written at sounding
pitch and xylophone notes are written one octave lower than soun-
ding."6
To summarize this descriptive comparison one might make the
following statements. The marimba must b e resonated and the
xylophone is optionally resonated. The marimba has long thin bars
and the xylophone has stout thick bars. The prominent overtone of
the marimba is t w o octaves above the fundamentalwhile that of the
xylophone is a twelfth above the fundamental. The range of the
marimba is at least one octave lower than the xylophone. The
marimba is played with soft mallets and the xylophoneis played with
hard mallets.
The notes of the marimba sound where written and the notes of
the xylophone sound up one octave from the notes that are written.
1 J.A. Westrup, and F. Harrison, The New College Encyclopedia of Music (New
York, 1960).
2 Vida Chenoweth, "The Differences Among Xylophones, Marimbas and Vibraharp",
Instrumentalist, (June, 1961) p. 68.
3 E. G. Richardson, The Acoustics of Orchestral Instruments and the Organ (New
York, 1929), p. 90.
4 James Moore, "The Mysticism of the Marimba", Percussive Notes (June, 1966), p. 1.
5 Ibid., p. 1
6 Ibid., p. 2
To be continued in next issue.
TEXT A N D REFERENCE MATERIAL
SOLO A N D ENSEMBLE LITERATURE FOR PERCUSSION, a 56
page booklet under the sponsorship of the Percussive Arts Society
(PAS) is now available-- Send $1.00 which includes postage and han-
dling costs direct to: F. Michael Combs, Department of Music, Univer-
sity of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tenn. 37916. Mike and his committee
have prepared a document, representing many hours of work, that
should be of great value to all percussionists, libraries, and music
dealers.
It is also requested as you use this booklet, that any errors, correc-
tions, and especially additions be reported to Mike Combs. Yearly sup-
plements and a new edition every five years are planned. Like any list
it is "out-of-date" practically as soon as it leaves the press, and only
with the cooperation of the publisher and the members of PAS can it
continue to be a valuable document.
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