page_title: Stevens technique
section_title: The grip
hierarchical_section_title: Stevens technique / The grip
caption_attribution_description: English: This is an image of four-mallet stevens grip for marimba.
context_page_description: The Stevens technique is a method of playing keyboard percussion instruments with four percussion mallets—two in each hand. It was developed by marimba player Leigh Howard Stevens during his studies at the Eastman School of Music in the 1970s, and codified in his 1979 book Method of Movement for Marimba. In this book, Stevens explains that the grip is an evolution of the Musser grip. This mallet-gripping technique is, therefore, sometimes called the Musser-Stevens grip.
context_section_description: In the Stevens technique, the mallets are held loosely. The two outside mallets are gripped with the little and ring fingers; the inside mallets are cantilevered between the flesh of the palm at the base of the thumb and the tip of the middle finger.
  Interval changes are accomplished by moving the inside and outside mallets independently of one another, as described in Stevens' book, Method of Movement for Marimba. As the interval widens, the inside mallet rolls between the thumb and index finger, such that the index finger moves from underneath to the side of the shaft, and the middle finger becomes the fulcrum of the cantilever. The outside mallet is moved principally with the little and ring fingers, although the first section of the middle finger follows along and remains in light contact. When properly used, this grip causes no tension on the hand muscles. This grip is primarily used with light mallets and movements that are close to the keyboard. When this grip is used with heavy mallets or with large movements, muscle strain and tendonitis can occur if small changes are not made to reduce stress in the hands.
caption: This is an image of four-mallet Stevens grip for marimba, viewed from the top.
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