Keyboard Voicing

Ron Samuels developed keyboard voicing after speaking with hundreds of percussionists about how they would like their marimbas to sound. He realized that many marimbists were seeking similar things. Everyone wanted keyboard response to be very even and balanced from the treble end to the bass end. Any fine musical instrument has this quality!

But to match and balance well across the octaves of a marimba requires a very large inventory of bars from which to create keyboards.

At Marimba One, we maintain a consistent supply of at least forty sets of 5 1/2 octave bars in our temperature controlled tuning rooms. Each bar is graded out in accordance to keyboard level: Traditional, Enhanced Traditional, and Finest 3% Select Keyboard Voicing.

Having forty tuned sets of bars on hand also allows us to select for keyboards that are more resonant, darker or brighter sounding, and bars that produce an amazing amount of sound.

We categorize our bars into three gradings:

Traditional Keyboard Voicing

The Traditional Keyboard Voicing features a bright and clear upper end, an even balanced middle section, and a dark, strong bass end. This keyboard is the defining sound of Marimba One and represents 60% of Marimba One keyboards made.

Enhanced Traditional Voicing

The Enhanced Traditional Voicing is more resonant, with an even darker bass end, than our Traditional Keyboard Voicing. It is exceptional in terms of its projection, evenness and balance.

Finest 3% Select Keyboard Voicing

Our Finest 3% Select Keyboard Voicing is chosen from the very top 3% of our year's production. These are truly rare, and phenomenal sounding keyboards, designed to astound and delight both player and audience. There are no finer keyboards made than our 3% Select keyboards.