Measurement of performance response differences when striking different areas of a marimba bar
Barry J. Larkin, R. A. Roberts · The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · 1999
Over the past 40 years, general percussion education manuals have stated that the best place to activate a marimba or xylophone bar is to strike it in the exact center. Over the years, this has become known as the ‘‘best spot,’’ and percussion students have been blindly advised to strive always to perform in this manner. Recent re-publications of mallet methods from the early part of the 20th century show that it was a common practice to perform on the end of the accidental bars for speed and superior sound. Also, leading classical marimba performer, Leigh Howard Stevens, has stated his preference for this type of execution. This paper will present spectral analysis results from measurements made at nine different locations on a Great F sharp marimba bar. The results will show the diverse types of responses generated by location changes of as little as an inch.