Day 15/100: The Marimba. The marimba originated in Africa and made its way to Central America, where it became so embedded in Guatemalan culture that it was declared the national instrument. Professional players typically use four mallets at once, two in each hand, to play chords and complex melodic lines simultaneously. The resonator tubes hanging beneath each wooden bar are tuned to amplify specific frequencies, which gives the marimba a much warmer and more sustained tone than a xylophone, ev