[1177]Re:Re:mallet choice (437 reads)	2001-06-30 13:13:40

James Walker Joined: N/A From: N/A Posts: N/A Rogue63 wrote: --- Look dude, this is not a worthwhile question. We are artists, not carpenters, and the sound we produce should be highly individual. (snip) --- On the one hand, it *is* a "worthwhile question" - part and parcel of "bring(-ing) the printed notes to life" is having the right tools to do the job. And anyone can sound "unique" - "unique" is fine, but uniqueness is only valuable if it sounds *good.* (Besides, so many factors go into sound production on the marimba that even if two players used the same mallets on the same instrument, they're going to sound different.) On the other hand, "what should I use to play (name any piece of music here)" is a very short-sighted question. If you tell a student to use "mallet X" when performing a certain piece, then fine; the student will now use a mallet which the teacher has found appropriate to that piece of music. My question is, has telling the student what mallets to use furthered his understanding of marimba performance? What would be better is for the student's teacher to explain to them *why* they made that mallet choice, and to convey to the student an understanding of how mallet design (as well as the materials used in crafting the mallet) affects the musical options one has available, so that six months from now, when the student starts to work on a completely different piece of music, they can make their own creative choice of mallet(s) for the piece. It's the old story of "give a man a fish, he eats for a day; teach a man to fish, he eats for a lifetime." Asking "what mallet should I use for this piece" amounts to learning the "tricks of the trade." Don't learn the tricks of the trade, learn the TRADE. JW PS Not to nitpick, but FWIW I know some carpenters who are real artists at what they do... http://www.malletjazz.com Remote Host:

[1170]mallet choice <kyle>	2001-06-29 12:54:42
[1171]Re:mallet choice <kyle>	2001-06-29 12:59:09
[1172]Re:mallet choice <Mike>	2001-06-29 15:27:18
[1176]Re:mallet choice <Rogue63>	2001-06-30 07:00:34
[1177]Re:Re:mallet choice <James Walker>	2001-06-30 13:13:40