does everyone think it is worthwhile buying a technique book for 4 mallet playing? i can't really afford a teacher and i've half learnt the technique from a good friend but i dont want to develop any bad habits. i find i can play quite well with my current technique, but when my palms get sweaty the mallets tend to slip a lot
Tom wrote:
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does everyone think it is worthwhile buying a technique book for 4 mallet playing? i can't really afford a teacher and i've half learnt the technique from a good friend but i dont want to develop any bad habits.
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Well, I certainly don't speak for "everyone," but IMHO...short answer? A qualified YES. There is, obviously, no substitute for studying with a teacher, especially if you're talking about the Stevens grip, but if private study not an option, then there are a couple of books on the market which will help.
The two that I have used most often when teaching in this area are Leigh Stevens' "Method of Movement for Marimba," and Dave Samuels' "A Musical Approach to Four Mallet Technique For Vibraphone(vol. 1)."
Leigh's offers detailed descriptions of the mechanics of the Stevens grip, along with a great deal of information which is not unique to Stevens grip (i.e., a Burton grip player would benefit from working with the text). The Samuels text offers the best in-a-book description of the mechanics of the Burton grip. (If you use the "traditional" or "scissors" grip, I'm afraid I don't know of any text dealing with them, as I don't use that technique.)
Both texts should be readily available from any decent percussion music store.
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i find i can play quite well with my current technique, but when my palms get sweaty the mallets tend to slip a lot
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What grip are you using? What are your mallet handles made from (birch? rattan? plastic?)
JW
My hands get sweaty occasionally when I play for anything that is particularlly important.
I figured out a trick.....quite by accident, and I am not saying I reccommend this for everyone, but for me it works. Before my last scholarship audition I was in the bathroom fixing my hair. I didn't wash my hands afterwards and for the first time my mallets weren't slippery from sweat. Since then I have found that by spraying my hands lightly with hairspray before I play I don't have any problems.
I know this isn't the most professional thing in the world, and in heat it can get sticky, but occassionally I resort to hair products!
Thought you all might get a kick out of that.
Jennifer
I use the Stevens grip and every mallet I own has those pencil grips on the end of the shafts, therefore I never have the problem of sweaty palms.
