March 10, 2010
Kalimba Magic NEWS
A
New Marimba Made to Accompany the Kalimba
The Bourne G1.5
I met Tom Bourne at the November 2009 American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) Meeting in San Diego. He had flown down from Washington to introduce his Bourne Marimbas to music therapists, and Deb and I had driven over from Tucson to introduce the kalimba to music therapists.
It turns out that Tom and I had a lot in common. Guitar was our main instrument. He had lived in Tucson and had studied at the UofA, I had worked there. And we had both made marimbas. Tom has made several thousand marimbas, while I've made about a dozen. I've hauled marimbas all over to work with kids on them. I've been around marimbas enough to know a really well-made marimba when I see one. And Tom Bourne's marimbas are those marimbas.
The Features that Make Bourne Marimbas Great
- The Bourne Marimba bars are made from African padauk, a beautiful looking and sounding wood.
- Bourne Marimbas have convenient carrying handles covered with smooth plastic hose.
- The mallets look and feel very sturdy - they will withstand a lot of abuse.
- There are two little cavities on the end of the frame provide storage for the two mallets
- Frame ends are slotted to fit on top of another marimba - if you buy six of these, they can all stack on top of each other, making them safe and easy to transport.
- Names of notes are painted on the marimba bars, making it simple to call out the names of notes or chords to players who are not familiar with the instrument.
- Bourne Marimbas are very sturdy and will stand up to normal use and a fair bit of abuse for years. If you are working with kids in the schools or in your MT practice, these are the marimbas for you.
Basically, when I looked at Tom's marimbas, I saw all the mistakes I had made in my own marimbas, but they had all been fixed in what seemed to be the best and easiest ways. I was truly impressed.
Tom has several sizes of marimbas, and they all look and sound great. You can put together a whole band with four different parts - that is, if you don't mind playing in the key of C.
The Bourne G1.5 Marimba: Made Just for Kalimba Magic
All of Tom's marimbas were in the key of C, which is not so great for the Hugh Tracey world, which centers around G (when you aren't in some other tuning). But Tom has designed a special model for Kalimba Magic: the Bourne G1.5.
It starts out being like a soprano 1-octave marimba from C5 to C6, but the marimba keeps on going up to G6 (a 4th higher than the treble kalimba's highest note D6) for a 1.5 octave range. In addition, the Fs have been replaced by F#s. Keyed in G with the 4 note (C) and 5 note (D) on the lowest two bars, it is easy to play with the Hugh Tracey kalimbas on this marimba.
This video shows my wife Deb playing the marimba while I play the Hugh Tracey Alto Kalimba. We co-wrote/co-improvised this piece with about 30 minutes of work on it. Music grows organically between these two instruments.
The Bourne G1.5 is Available Only through Kalimba Magic
Tom is building these marimbas on demand for Kalimba Magic customers. It will take several weeks for him to get to each G1.5 ordered, so don't buy one for your next performance. They are available for $250, plus about $30 shipping to locations in the continental US. International shipping will require extra fees.
You can order your own Bourne G1.5 Marimba online at the Kalimba Magic Shop today.
(The flip side of that statement is that if you want any other types of Bourne Marimbas, you'll have to order them from Tom Bourne!)
The Kalimba Magic Newsletter Archives
Discover the world of kalimbas at http://www.kalimbamagic.com
Shop for kalimbas and accessories at
the KALIMBA MAGIC SHOP