The most common musical genres that use the instrument include jazz works, marching band style and other orchestra arrangements. Marimbas came from xylophones and xylophones come from central Africa in the 1600s and even earlier. In fact, the name marimba comes from the Bantu word for xylophone, since rimba means a single bar xylophone and the “ma” prefix means multiples. By the 1600s, these instruments made their way to the Central America region.
In terms of sound, since they are made of rosewood; there are artificial creations but these tend to have lesser sound quality than real wood. Of course, the sounds that we might have heard from famous tunes featuring a marimba would probably be altered from the original sound, namely with the help of a resonator. Several mallets may be played simultaneously, letting the musician play chords with bigger interval skips.
Marimba bands are more common in areas like Guatemala where they represent the local culture, not to mention Oaxaca and Costa Rica. Famous musicians that use marimbas include Gary Burton of jazz, Julius Wechter who played Latin style, and even Elton John. One of the innovators, Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones used the marimba in rock and roll with songs like “Under my Thumb”.
Marimba royalty free music can make for excellent background music. Marimba might be a good choice if you are looking for a soft classical beat, or Bach-style classic, or perhaps even a Latin or modern pop rock sound. Jazz numbers also frequently use a marimba, as this is definitely the genre to match the marimba’s mellow and easygoing sound.
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