[820]Re:Re:grips (328 reads)	2001-04-06 05:29:11

James Walker Joined: N/A From: N/A Posts: N/A Something that strikes me in the current "which grip should I use?" debate (and, in other instances where a similar debate arises) is, everyone tends to make their final judgements on the suitability of a grip based on the initial tendencies of that grip. I use several grips - Burton, Stevens, and Stout - and I've found in my own playing (YMMV) that once I reached a certain level of facility, the amount that one grip was superior to another in a given area - again, in MY experience - tended to diminish. Is it easier to play larger intervals with Stevens grip than it is with Burton? Or "one-handed" rolls? Generally, yes. Is it impossible to play large intervals or one-handed rolls with Burton? Nope - just ask Bill Molenhof. (Maybe one has to use longer mallets than one would use on vibes if you're playing on a five-octave marimba, but...) Is it easier to play at louder dynamic levels with Burton than it is with Stevens? Generally, yes, especially when one is in the beginning-to-intermediate stages of learning to play. However, I know several Musser/Stevens grip players who can create plenty of volume with Stevens grip - it just takes a little longer to build up one's strength with this grip. Is it easier to maintain a constant interval between the mallets of a single hand with Burton, vs. Stevens? Yep - again, especially if one is in the early stages of learning the grip; once one has developed one's technique, the difference is much less. And one other thing which is often overlooked: not only is there an issue of what grip is "best" for a particular piece of music, but one must consider what grip is "best" for a particular PLAYER - some people's hands are better suited to Burton than Stevens, or vice-versa. Sure, each grip has its specific strengths and weaknesses, and there certainly are pieces in the marimba repertoire which lend themselves to particular grips and techniques - especially if the piece was composed by, or written for, a player using that particular grip. However, I've found that the "common ground" between grips is greater than the differences. JW http://www.malletjazz.com Remote Host:

[805]grips <kyle>	2001-04-04 10:16:44
[806]Re:grips <Scott>	2001-04-04 10:42:40
[807]Re:Re:grips <Scott Kitchen>	2001-04-04 11:09:07
[810]Re:Re:Re:grips <dave>	2001-04-04 12:33:46
[809]Re:Re:grips <Sarah>	2001-04-04 12:17:32
[813]Re:grips for Abe peices <Nat Sakimura>	2001-04-05 08:27:58
[812]Re:Re:grips <Jeremy>	2001-04-05 02:26:15
[814]Re:grips <keiko abe>	2001-04-05 10:55:48
[818]Re:grips <Jennifer>	2001-04-06 00:06:32
[820]Re:Re:grips <James Walker>	2001-04-06 05:29:11
[823]Re:Re:Re:grips <Jennifer>	2001-04-06 10:02:53