MARIMBA

What is a marimba? Well, I'll get to that.

Recently I visited the small village of Greenethorpe in central NSW, about 30 kilometres from Cowra. The town itself has a population of about 100 people, with another 100 living on farms in the surrounding area. The town was originally built in 1908 to accommodate workers on the nearby Iandra Station, then owned by George Henry Greene.

The town boasts a General store/Post Office, a petrol station, a primary school, an Irish pub (built from mud bricks) and an art gallery. The gallery features the work of talented artist, John Hill, a painter and sculptor. John is also well known for the transformations he does on caravans, turning aluminium boxes into functional, works of art, or 'gypsy' homes. The one he is working on now is fantastic. It is a timber cottage built on the back of a truck and has storage places for his boat and tools underneath the bedroom.

Nearby is also Iandra castle, a 53 room 'English' castle. This was built by Mr G. H. Greene from 1899 to 1903. It is now a private residence, though there are tours of the castle every month.

The village is beautiful, peaceful and friendly, and at present very green and lush. It has recently participated in a 'farm to rent for a dollar a week' promotion to try to attract residents to the town. Though having seen the place I am surprised this is necessary..... it was idyllic.

I was there to help install a children's playground at the school. The school had just over 20 students at present. The students were happy and keen, and it appeared a lot of learning was taking place. However what caught our attention were the marimbas. These were stored in an open weather-shed, so the students had access to them all the time and were encouraged to make use of them frequently.

So what is a marimba. Well it is a musical lnstrument, I imagine from the same family as the xylophone or the glockenspiel. It is made on a timber frame and has pipes made from PVC pipe. On top are wooden slats which are struck using sticks or mallets with a rubber end on them. They produce a rich, percussion sound. Three students can play on the instrument at once.

The marimba originated in Africa and was taken to the Americas with the slave trade where it adopted its modern form, though there are many variations on what they are made from, what they look like and their form and shape. Professional, orchestral quality instruments can cost thousands of dollars, but there are also books (and I imagine internet articles) which explain and give measurements for building one at home.

The students at Greenethorpe all know how to play the instrument and have recently won prizes at the local eisteddfod competition. Because they have access to the instrument all the time they can practice anytime they are in the play ground. The marimbas the school have have all been painted and decorated by a local artist and make for an impressive display. The students were only too happy to entertain us with two tunes which they have been learning, and we were only to happy to be distracted from our work and listen.