Carbon White (Solo 4-Mallet Marimba)

Carbon White for solo marimba engages with flowing melodies and rhythmic intricacies, creating a deep sense of introspection and charm. Utilizing the various resonant tones and dynamic shifts inherent to the instrument, the piece takes the listener on a journey of contemplative exploration accompanied by warm sonorities and shifting moods.

Genre: Marimba (4-mallet) | # of Players: 1
Series: N/A
Level: Medium Advanced | Duration: 5:00

Instrumentation
Marimba (5-octave)

Program Notes
Carbon White for solo marimba was written in 2017, with revisions made in 2021. The piece explores a short motive that was in my mind in the summer of 2016, before I arrived at the University of Iowa. I struggled to find a place where this melody could thrive and eventually found it’s place on the solo marimba. The structure explores this melody through register and tonal modulations – while creating contrast and context with a second theme that appears in the middle of the piece. My intentions were to write a work that represented something my parents could enjoy listening to.

– Z.M.

Performed by Christopher Wilson