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Henry Baldwin
Orchestra of the Royal Opera House

Henry started his orchestral career in the percussion section of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra before becoming Co-Principal Percussion at the London Philharmonic Orchestra and subsequently Section Principal Percussion at the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. Henry has played with many other UK orchestras as a guest including the London Symphony, the Philharmonia, the City of Birmingham Symphony and Halle Orchestras, and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
Henry is also Principal Percussion with and a founding member of the critically acclaimed Aurora Orchestra, with whom he has performed a wide range of repertoire. Highlights include Boulez’s ‘Le Marteau sans Maître’ as part of the International Chamber Music Series at Southbank Centre, and solo performances on tour internationally.
Henry teaches at the Royal Welsh College or Music and Drama and has given masterclasses at many other conservatoires in the UK.
Henry Baldwin signature series
A range of wooden xylophone mallets designed to give an unparalleled range of colour and attack whilst keeping that special wood on wood character. These premium mallets were specifically designed to bring the best out of top of the range symphonic xylophones.

HB - X1
These hugely powerful mallets have to be heard to be believed! They effortlessly draw enormous tone and volume out of the xylophone making them perfect for those special occasions when you need the xylophone to rise above with the awesome power of a full symphony orchestra.
It is advised HB-X1 should be used with caution as overplaying may result in damage to instruments with soft wooden bars.
Specification
Instrument: Xylophone
Tone: Very bright
Head material: Blackwood
Head shape: Super ellipse
Weight: 32/33gr
Overall length: 37cm
Handle: Rattan
Suggested repertoire
Shostakovich: Symphonies 4, 5, 7 and 11

HB - X2
This extrovert mallet is perfect for occasions when you don’t want the xylophone to blend but instead want the xylophone’s solo personality to shine.
Specification
Instrument: Xylophone
Tone: Bright
Head material: Leadwood
Head shape: Super ellipse
Weight: 31/32gr
Overall length: 36cm
Handle: Rattan
Suggested repertoire
Britten: Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals
Shostakovich: The Bolt

HB - X3
This is a powerful mallet that also loves to blend and is perfect for prominent xylophone passages that require you to combine with the woodwind, piano or upper strings.
Specification
Instrument: Xylophone
Tone: Medium Bright
Head material: Ebony
Head shape: Super ellipse
Weight: 29/30gr
Overall length: 36cm
Handle: Rattan
Suggested repertoire
Gershwin: Porgy and Bess
Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk
Copland: Appalachian Spring

HB - X4
This mallet is perfect for those quieter moments when you don’t want to unleash the full power of your xylophone but instead need to move delicately and dexterously around the instrument.
These lightweight mallets are manufactured with softwood heads and should only be used for appropriate xylophone repertoire.
Specification
Instrument: Xylophone
Tone: Medium
Head material: Bubinga
Head shape: Super ellipse
Weight: 27/28gr
Overall length: 35.5cm
Handle: Rattan
Suggested repertoire
Stravinsky: Firebird
Debussy: Images 1. Gigues
Bernstein: Chichester Psalms