Toddlers Marimba is a great percussion instrument for children that want to make music. This instrument is a type of idiophone, but with a more resonant and lower-pitched tessitura than the xylophone. The marimba was developed in Central America by African slaves, and descended from its ancestral balafon instrument, which was also built by African slaves. Marimba is now the national instrument of Guatemala and Costa Rica. Modern uses of the marimba include solo performances, woodwind and brass e