(Lithophone, Stonaphone, Steinharmonika, Steinspiel, Lithophon, Litofono)
Mfg. by Elemental Design
This stone marimba has bars which are wide like a typical wooden marimba, but are thinner and flat, which helps increase resonance.
The bars are made of roof tile slate, and Emil Richards usually played them with soft mallets with a rubber core to bring out the tone.
He bought this stone marimba in the 1990s from craftsman Jim Doble whom he met at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention.
A four-note chromatic motive on stone marimba repeats throughout this excerpt in Flightplan (2005) by James Horner.
Please note: these are just examples, as playing technique and mallet/stick choices often have a great effect on the timbre.
These sound excerpts, to the best of our knowledge (unless otherwise noted), include this actual instrument from our collection. To hear the instrument yourself, or to let us know of any errors, please contact us.