Drummer Cafe Community Forum

I am learning marimba now for 6 months, and I am really frustrated with those scale excercizes in c-major or a-minor, because of playing just on "white" bars (Mallet control).

On has to be a real sniper  ??? to do 1 octave up-down, or 2-octave up-down (throughout entire 4 octave.)
(Cdefgabcbagfed Defgabcdcbagfe Efga....)

But I really enjoy playing in any other mode, as long it has some "white" and some "black" bars. Gives 1000% better orientation and no "sniper-mode", you can really focus on music and make up-downs 1000% easier.

Also makes nice spreads with 4-mallet.

Any of you share the same feelings?

My mallet experience is limited to playing those little one-octave marimbas and metallophones in grade school music class, but I can say that I just don't care for the key of C in general.

It does take a lot of practice, and accuracy, to play in the key of C Major ... on a mallet instrument. As you mentioned, there are no sharps or flats in the key, so you are playing on all the "white" bars (so to speak).

Slow methodical practice is the only way to go. When I practice scales, modes, etc., I always play the entire length of the keyboard. This assures me that I am fluid ... up and down the instrument ... and can make necessary body posture adjustments, as well as working through various changes on the keyboard ... such as varying bar widths ... with the bars getting smaller as you move up the keyboard (on most instruments).

Phil Kraus' Modern Mallet Method - Volume 1 (Elementary) is excellent for working on your scales because he uses a wide number of variations ... which not only make playing scales interesting and musical, but also help build the accuracy and understanding of every note you are playing.

it's weird, when i started playing the C-major scale back in elementary school, i thought i would have the easiest time with it... now in high school... its one of my worst scales to play in songs... grrrrr

Mussser etude in C Major for Marimba!  Yee-Haw!

Probably can't even play it today but I can certainly feel your pain.

Yeah ....key signature perspective changes from piano to mallet instruments. I think every instrument is going to have troublesome keys or tempos.

Eventually it can be a good thing.
 
 ;)

Jim

I was the same way when I first started playing mallets. C major kicked my butt. As soon as I stopped thinking "Oh this is so hard since there aren't any accidentals" I was killin it. C major's the easiest scale to me now.  :) I just had to get out of the mindset of how hard it was and start thinking "this is easy."

I found it much easier to learn if not played with continuous straight eighth notes at first.  Try 1 2& 3& 4& 1.  Or even a shuffle pattern (eight with a dotted sixteenth the whole way through) when you play the scale.  You have to develop a sense of where the keys are by feel without looking.

Think a C major scale is hard?  Try playing Druckman's Reflections on the Nature of Water or Klatzow's Dances of Earth and Fire.  

Point being it's just a scale, do your best, start slow, build your way up, that's the percussionist's modus operandi.  

I struggled with the C Major Scale for years.  I am a percussion major at the University Of Northern Iowa school of Music.  I have one question for you.  How are you sticking it?  

I've found that many beginners try right hand lead for everything.   If youre not already try a left hand lead.  It makes it flow so much easier.  If you still struggle just work on it slow and build up speed.  Practice makes perfect.  Good luck bud.

Sticking:
Well, I hold 4 mallets, traditional way.
I use following stickings (two mallets) 1+3,  3+1; 2+3, 3+2; 2+4, 4+2,
leading with left or right.

I guess I am just trying to many things in too short time.
Well it is getting better slowly, thanks for advice.

Ales

I've found that developing the muscle memory, for note placement, really helped me when working with the lower manual keys (white notes), rather than relying on the visual aspects.

Exercises to try:

• Don't look at the keyboard when you play. Look up or close your eyes. If you have to read music, try creating a blinder of some sort to keep you from seeing the keyboard, but still being able to see the music on the music stand. I wear glasses, so it's easy to put some paper on the lower part of the lens (like bifocals) to block my peripheral vision.
• Place the cover or sheet over the instrument so you can see the bars, and practice your scales that way.

Developing the mechanics of how far your mallet needs to move is the key to mastering the instrument ... kind of like playing 4+ mallets. If you rely on your eyes only, you'll always be limited on what you can do.

Alesj,

Go get yourself a copy of Gordon Stout's books on ideokinetics and marimba technique.  While I haven't worked out of the book, I did deal with many of the materials which ended up in it, when I studied with Gordon (about ten years prior to the publication of the book).  Gordon does a fabulous job of explaining the concepts, and has some great exercises to help one develop these skills.

Besides...as I understand it (what I learned from Gordon), the part of the brain the processes a visual judging of distance, is separate from the part of the brian which deals with muscle memory and a tactile sense of distance.  So, if you're looking at the bars to see where the notes are as you play, you're actually doing more work than you would if you just went by "feel" and muscle memory.