Malletech Mallets

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August 27th, 2010 admin Leave a comment Go to comments

What marimba mallets do you recommend?

I'm a junior in high school, and it's time for me to invest in a set of marimba mallets that will help me to grow as a musician. I'm looking for mallets that: will last a long time, create variations of colorful sound throughout the instrument, are good for both solo and ensemble work (both 2 and 4 mallet pieces), are good for college auditions, and will ultimately be able to bring me into the world of professional percussion later in my life. So let me know what series you use or what you recommend the best mallets to get are. preferably not TOO expensive, no further than $40 a pair. I've looked at the Malletech Concert Series, and also the Michael Burritt series, but I'm not sure. Please let me know what you think, all opinions are helpful! Thanks a bunch!

Woahhhhhhhhhhh, that you're thinking this much about this is good enough, haha.

Any reputable brand will be good. See if you can find a music store and experiment. What you'll need to find are the mallets that 'sound' right, feel right, and otherwise make you happy.

Becauseeee..

A mallet has pretty much two qualities: hardness and material quality. If you get any big name brand (even Vic Firth, haha) you will be in a good position for quality. They will last long (maybe even to college!), get a "good" tone, be good for solo and ensemble, be professional, and all that.

And hardness, well... Harder=sharper, softer=warmer. You shouldn't expect "variation of colorful sound" from one set of mallets because they will only be able to do what their hardness allows. The performer will be the one to vary the timbre, and that's through technique. What you want to watch out for is the super cheap mallets. They will feel weird, sound weird, and throw off your A -game.

And I'm really sorry to say this, but you need to get ready to spend a ton of money on mallets (over the course of your life). A professional's stick bag will be the size of a large suitcase, and house a whole variety of mallets. More than anything else they will be different hardnesses, since different situations call for very different sounds.

Anyway, get out there and experiment! Find a sound you like and hope that your director doesn't mind! (PS, I'd avoid extremely hard or soft mallets if this is your only pair. Try and go to the middle.)