Tony Osborne: Marimba-Malimba! for double bass quartet and African drums or marimba

About the Composition

Marimba-Malimba! is a vibrant and exciting work for the advanced double bass quartet, requiring four bassists who are happy playing throughout the solo register of the instrument. Possibly unique in the repertoire, Marimba-Malimba! is in one extended movement and evokes great joy and celebration in music which is rhythmically charged from the first note to the last.

The piece can be played with African Drums or Marimba, but not both, although the percussionist could change from drums to marimba for different sections as they prefer.

The edition includes two marimba parts - one for double bassists in solo tuning and one for orchestral tuning.

Seven differently pitched drums are suggested by the composer but this can be simplified to three or four drums at the players discretion.

“Marimba-Malimba! was commissioned by David Heyes for The British & International Bass Forum (BIBF) for Bass-Fest’99, and was premiered at Leighton Park School (Reading, Berkshire) on 13 August 1999 by David Heyes, Mette Hanskov, Corrado Canonici and Martin Gregg.

The suggestion was for music with an African flavour, and a distinctive rhythmic idea, a very short note followed by two slightly longer ones, came to mind and formed the basis of the work. As the piece took shape, it was clear that the words of the title were just waiting to be used - ‘marimba’ and ‘malimba’ translate from the Bantu language as ‘musical note’.

It is thus no surprise that there is an important part for marimba, or African drums, and the work is intended to evoke the ever popular sounds of an African or Sowetan choir and to provide an exciting addition to the growing range of musical experience for double bass quartet.” [Tony Osborne, 1999]

About the Composer

Born in 1947 into a musical family, Tony Osborne studied at the Royal Academy of Music (London) with John Walton (double bass) and Richard Stoker (composition), and divided a busy career between composing, teaching, and performing. A prolific composer and arranger, Tony's original compositions include works in almost every genre, notably Chaconne Syncopations and Wainwright's Ways for brass quintet, Celebration Fanfare for brass ensemble, the musical A Fine Time for Wine, a beautiful and dramatic Requiem, and many works for string orchestra. Tony’s music for young bassists is very much at the heart of the teaching repertoire, particularly his jazzy and enjoyable bass trios and quartets, and he had the rare ability to create wonderful music which is always player and audience-friendly.

In 2001 Tony Osborne was elected an ARAM (Associate of the Royal Academy of Music) for his pioneering and important work for double bass and was a featured com- poser at Bass-Fest for over ten years. He was a very successful BIBF Composer-in-residence in 2002-3, was a judge for the British Composer Awards and a judge for the BIBF Composition Competition from 1999 until 2015. Tony Osborne died on 30 March 2019 at the age of 71.