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20 views

pit_technique_packet

Uploaded by

visoredmusic17
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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You are on page 1/ 5

Ensemble Expectations

-A Three Ring Binder with plastic sleeves will hold this packet, a pencil, and Music
for the show. All three of those things must be in the binder at all times. It saves the
trouble of not knowing where to start, if you’re playing wrong notes, etc…

-It is of supreme importance that we continually look after our equipment. Cleaning
instruments all the time, and taking care of all our gear. It is very expensive to repair or
replace a lot of the gear. Regularly looking over it and checking it will make it last
longer and we will not need to spend money on fixing it. It will also make you look
professional as a group. That is very important when it comes to first impressions.

Keyboard Technique
-Posture: Our feet will be behind our instruments shoulder width apart with our knees
slightly bent, to enable us to move behind our instruments. Each keyboard should be at
each individuals playing height. Keep your shoulders square and your head up. No
Slouching!

-Vibraphones: your right toes* will be on the pedal. This is to ensure that your right
foot/heel will be providing balance for you as you move behind your keyboard with your
left foot.

-Set Position - Both mallet heads sharing the space over the key where you are starting
from with mallets about an inch above the keyboard. This is also true with four mallets.

-Playing Position - Mallet heads are aligned equally at full extension above the
keyboard, which is also the top of the Piston Stroke (read on). This will change
depending on defined height.

-Prep - This is how we “tap ourselves off”. One person will give two preps followed by
the group giving two preps prior to an entrance. The two preps will be a up-down-up-
down-up sequence and on the third “up” the ensemble will lift their mallets to “playing
position.” More explaination will be given when we go over out technique.

2 Mallet Technique
-Divide the mallet shaft into thirds with your eyes. You will place the lowest third
(apposing the mallet head) in the palm of your hand griping the mallet with your bottom
three fingers. Your pointer finger and thumb should line up directly on the third division
of the mallet leaving 1” of the mallet sticking out of the back of your hand. Ninety
percent of the stroke should come from the wrist so it is important that the technique in
the hand is solid. The back three fingers should remain closed into the palm and the
index finger can be slightly relaxed (but not pointed). The other ten percent should come
from
the arm as an extension of a full wrist stroke. A marimba or a vibraphone played with
mallets does not have rebound so this approach allows us to create our own rebound for
the Piston Stroke.

-Piston Stroke - A type of stroke where the starting and stopping point are the same. No
wasted motion is created by a piston stroke. The mallet should go straight down to play
and straight up on its return back to the original playing position.

-Shift - When going from one note to another you use the return stroke of a piston stoke
to travel to your next destination.

We will use the piston stroke and shift in 2 and 4 mallet techniques. We will also go
over all this in person but make sure you have an idea of it before we go over it.

4 Mallet Technique

-We will use Stevens grip on both Vibes and Marimba. I believe this grip to be the most
efficient in stroke consistency and interval changing along with unified technique across
our keyboard section.

-The following process is the same for both hands.

-First, grip a mallet with your pinky and ring finger. There should be minimal excess
mallet protruding from the bottom of your pinky.
-Second, place the back of another mallet in the palm of your hand just under your thumb
muscle. Your middle finger is holding the mallet into your palm/thumb muscle. Your
pointer finger acts as a perch for the inside mallet (2 or 3) and the mallet should be able
to rest without any pressure in your hand.
-Finally place your thumb on the inside mallet (2 or 3) directly over your pointer finger
perch. This will allow you to freely change interval
4 Mallet Stroke Types
There are four stroke types that we will use with the Stevens technique:

1. Double Vertical strokes


2. Single Independent strokes
3. Single Alternating strokes
4. Double Lateral strokes

1. Double Vertical strokes:


Follow the same guidelines for the 2-mallet piston stroke. This stroke should be played
primarily with the wrist. In order to check to see that you are turning your wrist correctly,
you should see your wrist "pop" up as the mallets strike the bars. This wrist pop should
NOT be exaggerated; it is a natural result of performing the stroke correctly with the
wrist. Gradually, we will learn to incorporate the arm into the stroke. The mallets should
travel straight up and down without any side-to-side motion. Make sure to keep your
fingers relaxed!

2. Single Independent strokes:


We will primarily be using this stroke type for mallets 2 and 3 (the inside mallets). The
set position will be the same as Double Verticals. The playing position will be achieved
by rotating the "active" around the unused mallet (i.e.: mallet 3 will rotated around mallet
4). In order to develop independence, in this case, with the inside mallets, it is important
to keep the outer mallets as still as possible. The outer will be defined as being half the
height of the playing position. In order to achieve this DON'T USE ANY TENSION!!
Relaxed fingers act as shook absorbers-tension will cause the outer mallets to twitch
vertically and/or horizontally. Make sure that you keep your index finger and thumb firm,
but relaxed. This will help to keep control of the inside mallets.

3. Single Alternating strokes:


This stroke type is closely related with the Single Independent stroke, but without
concern for motion in the other mallet. The set position and playing position are the same
as in the Double Vertical stroke. As one mallet strikes the bar, the other mallet will raise
slightly. Be sure to not simply rotate the wrist: instead, think of the pivot point as
bouncing from one mallet to the next. This will allow us to control the articulation,
rhythm and dynamic of each mallet. It is important to note that TEMPO is a major
determining factor for when a Single Alternating stroke TURNS INTO a one-handed roll
motion. As the tempo increases, the ability to control each mallet will decrease, until the
motion is solely a rotation of the wrist.

4. Double Lateral strokes:


Double Lateral strokes should not operate like the other 3 stroke types. The goal here is
to produce TWO strokes through ONE hand motion. Again, the set position and playing
position are the same as a Double Vertical stroke. In the case of the outside Double
Lateral stroke, play as if you were going to perform a Single Independent stroke (the
outside mallet will strike the bar first) and then rotated your wrist counter-clockwise to
strike the bar with your inside mallet. The motion of your wrist should be similar to
turning a doorknob. In order to achieve a consistent sound from mallet to mallet, you will
need to use a lot of "torque" in your wrist. Also, be sure to keep your index finger and
thumb firm, but relaxed!

It is important that you are aware of the technique that has been defined and that
you are always working to apply the technique to the warm-ups/show.

Care for the equipment


-The instruments are to be treated with the finest care at all times. Nothing is EVER to be
placed on top of the keyboards or timpani for any reason short of mallets, sticks, and of
course the instrument covers. Instruments are to be covered at all times when they are not
being played. Sticks and mallets are never to be placed on the ground/floor. No one
outside of the pit membership is to play any pit instrument at any time without
permission from an instructor or the pit section leader. Every time an instrument is
moved all screws and moving parts must be checked/tightened before and after it is
moved.

Care for your health


-At no time should anyone play while hurt without us knowing about it. If you suspect a
physical problem due to your playing, you MUST inform us immediately. We are not
doctors, but if something can be done for you we will take care of it. If not, please
understand that we need to avoid creating any lasting injuries such as tendonitis. The
technique program is designed to avoid these problems. Much of the way we designed it
was based on personal experience with tendonitis when performing and adjusting the
technique so that one could play without pain or further injury. Stick to the technique,
work diligently to make adjustments to match the technique and you shouldn’t have any
problems. If you are in rehearsal, you are 100%. Period. If you need to be out, that’s fine,
just never rehearse if you aren’t going to do so 100%. Take care of the problem, then get
back in.
Care for the group
-There are many parts of this activity that go way beyond playing and marching. Far
more important is how well you work with the group, how well you interact with others
from different backgrounds, different ability levels, different ages, and different
experience levels. We are all in this together and you have to take care of each other no
matter what.

Jim Stelmach
jstelmach317@gmail.com

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