The most widely used 4-mallet grip today is the "Burton Grip" named after Gary Burton - arguably the greatest vibraphone player to date. This is the grip I use and teach, as I feel it is the most versatile grip for general use over the whole range of percussion instruments.

It seems there are many subtle differences in the way different players use this grip - the following pictures show the way in which I play and feel comfortable. It is not meant as "the exacting grip - where everything else is wrong" - it is simply a general guide to where to put the fingers etc. for those who are just starting to learn 4-mallet technique.

The Burton Grip

MEDIUM GAP - VARIATION 1.This is what the grip looks like with a medium gap between the mallets. In this position you can most easily see the two commonly used variations of the grip. In these pictures you can see the knuckle of the pointer finger on top of the outside mallet. This is used sometimes for extra support and control of the outside mallet. Once the spacing of the mallets gets really wide - this variation doesn't really work. It is mainly used for medium gaps around a fourth or fifth.

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MEDIUM GAP - VARIATION 2. These pictures also show a medium gap between the mallets, but without the knuckle of the pointer finget on top of the outside mallet. Instead the shaft of the mallet sits right back in the webbing between the pointer and middle finger. From underneath, you can clearly see how the mallets are gripped. The outside mallet is clamped into the base of the palm by the tip of the ring finger, and also held into the middle of the hand by the shaft of the inside mallet. The inside mallet is held at the very end by the little finger curled around it, and also held in a pincer like grip between the thumb and tip of the pointer finger.

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SMALL GAP. These pictures show a small gap between the mallets. The thumb has pushed the inside mallet right over so the mallet heads are touching. The pointer gives way untill it is pointing along the shafts. Make sure you keep it on the shaft of the inside mallet though, as it must be ready at all times to push it back again.
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BIG GAP. These pictures show the mallets stretched out to the biggest gap the thumb will allow. This will depend a little on what size keys you are playing, but you you should aim to be able to make this gap at least a octave before we go the the next stage of sliding the mallet past the thumb. (see next pictures) Notice the tip of the pointer finger really starting to push downwards into the thumb and palm of the hand at this point.

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FULL STRETCH. These picturs show the inside mallet pushed so wide that the thumb actually slides over the top of the shaft, and we use the base knuckle of the thumb on top of the shaft for support instead. This should be done when we really need the extra gap, or when playing only with the outside mallet for an extended period. In this case, we usually aim for about 90 degrees between the mallets. If we are doing it just for more stretch, it should be avoided if we can stretch the thumb instead. This is because once the shaft is past the thumb, the thumb cannot be used to shrink the gap in a hurry again. Note the pointer finger is now not over the shaft of the mallet at all, but the very tip is blocking the mallet shaft from springing back.

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