What is a vibraphone?
Q: What is a vibraphone?
A: A vibraphone is a percussion instrument that looks like a xylophone but with aluminium bars instead of wood. It has resonators underneath the bars and an electric motor which can be switched on by a pedal to create a vibrating sound.
Q: How are the bars arranged?
A: The bars are arranged in a similar way to a piano keyboard so that tunes can be played. There is also an alternate form called the 6-plus-6-system, where each row has the bars in a whole-tone distance and both rows are in half-tone distance.
Q: What type of mallets are used for the vibraphone?
A: Mallets (beaters) with rubber balls at the end, wrapped tightly in yarn or cord, are usually used for playing the vibraphone. They may be made of rattan or birch, and they may also be slightly harder than those used for marimbas.
Q: How should mallets be held when playing?
A: Mallets should typically be held between the thumb and index finger, using other fingers to help control them. Playing with four mallets allows players to play harmony (chords with four notes).
Q: Are there any special techniques used when playing the vibraphone?
A: Yes, sometimes special techniques such as "pitch bending" are used by sliding one of the mallets along a bar in a specific way or by bowing across an edge of one of its bars using cello or double bass bows.
Q: When was it first made?
A: Vibraphones were first made in 1921 in America.
Q: In what types of music is it commonly heard?
A: Vibraphones are commonly heard in jazz music, especially within combos, as well as works by composers such as Alban Berg's opera Lulu; Olivier Messiaen; Leonard Bernstein; Benjamin Britten; and Vaughan Williams' Symphony no 8 opening piece.
