marimba

marimba
/meuh rim"beuh/, n.
a musical instrument, originating in Africa but popularized and modified in Central America, consisting of a set of graduated wooden bars, often with resonators beneath to reinforce the sound, struck with mallets.
[1695-1705; < Pg < Kimbundu or a related Bantu language; akin to KALIMBA]

* * *

Xylophone with resonators under each bar.

The original African instrument uses tuned calabash resonators. In Mexico and Central America, where it was brought by African slaves, the wooden bars may be affixed to a frame supported by legs or hung at the player's waist. The orchestral marimba uses long metal tubes as resonators.

* * *

      any of several varieties of xylophone. Marimba is one of many African names for the xylophone, and, because African instruments bearing this name frequently have a tuned calabash resonator for each wooden bar, some ethnomusicologists use the name marimba to distinguish gourd-resonated from other xylophones.

      The xylophone was taken to Latin America by African slaves (or possibly originated through pre-Hispanic contact). There it became known as the marimba, and it has remained a popular folk instrument in Central America. The wooden bars are affixed to a frame supported by legs or hung at the player's waist. Large, deep-toned instruments up to 61/2 octaves in range are sometimes played by four musicians. Marimba keys have tubular or gourd resonators, and, as in Africa, a buzzing membrane is frequently set in the resonator wall, adding a sharp edge to the instrument's sound.

      The orchestral marimba, with metal resonators, was developed in the United States in the early 20th century by J.C. Deagan and U.G. Leedy. It is a tube-resonated instrument pitched an octave below the orchestral xylophone; its range varies, but 31/2octaves upward from the C below middle C is common. Players may hold two sticks in each hand to play up to four notes at a time. Extremely large marimbas are known as xylorimbas.

      The Clair Omar Musser marimba ensemble, which performed at the Chicago World's Fair in 1933–34, helped move the instrument into the concert hall. In the mid-20th century, new compositions and ensembles flourished. Compositions for orchestral marimba include a concertino (1940) by the American composer Paul Creston (Creston, Paul) and a concerto (1947) by the French composer Darius Milhaud (Milhaud, Darius).

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Marimba — Tesitura …   Wikipedia Español

  • marimba — MARÍMBA s. (muz.) balafon. (marimba este un instrument de percuţie african.) Trimis de siveco, 05.08.2004. Sursa: Sinonime  MARÍMBA s.f. Balafon. [< sp. marimba < cuv. bantu]. Trimis de LauraGellner, 13.09.2007. Sursa: DN  MARÍMBA s. f.… …   Dicționar Român

  • marimba — [ marimba ] n. m. • 1777; empr. à une langue africaine, probablt bantoue (Congo) ♦ Xylophone africain dont chaque lame est munie d un résonateur en bambou, en bois, ou en calebasse. Des marimbas. ● marimba nom masculin Xylophone africain dont… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • marimbă — MARÍMBĂ, marimbe, s.f. (muz.) Balafon. – Din fr. marimba. Trimis de claudia, 13.09.2007. Sursa: DEX 98  marímbă s. f., g. d. art. marímbei, pl. marímbe Trimis de siveco, 10.08.2004. Sursa: Dicţionar ortografic …   Dicționar Român

  • marimba — 1704, from an African language, probably Bantu (Cf. Kimbundu and Swahili marimba, malimba, name of a xylophone like instrument) …   Etymology dictionary

  • Marimba — Ma*rim ba, n. [Pg.] A musical istrument of percussion, consisting of bars yielding musical tones when struck. Knight. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • marimba — s. f. 1. Instrumento musical formado por lâminas de vidro ou metal, graduadas em escala, que se percutem com baquetas. 2. Espécie de tambor dos cafres …   Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa

  • marimba — marìmba ž DEFINICIJA glazb. udaraljka sa 16 do 19 drvenih pločica slična ksilofonu; podrijetlom afričko narodno glazbalo ETIMOLOGIJA port. ← egz …   Hrvatski jezični portal

  • marimba — sustantivo femenino 1. Instrumento musical de percusión parecido al xilófono que se toca en América. 2. Uso/registro: coloquial. Origen: Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay. Paliza, zurra o castigo. 3. Uso/re …   Diccionario Salamanca de la Lengua Española

  • marimba — (De or. africano). 1. f. Especie de tambor que se usa en algunas partes de África. 2. Instrumento musical en que se percuten listones de madera, como en el xilófono. 3. Am. Instrumento musical en que se percuten con un macillo blando tiras de… …   Diccionario de la lengua española

  • marimba — [mə rim′bə] n. [Mbundu, a percussive instrument resembling the xylophone, akin to Tshiluba madimba] a musical instrument somewhat like a xylophone, consisting of a series of hard wooden bars, usually with resonators beneath, struck with small… …   English World dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”