Hailed as the "first concert marimbist," Vida Chenoweth (1929-2018), following in the steps of Clair Omar Musser, is one of the most influential artists ever to perform on the instrument. She pioneered compositional, performance and interpretive techniques commonly used on the instrument today, among these the performance of polyphonic music via independent mallets.

Chenoweth, perhaps more than any other artist, is responsible for elevating solo marimba to a level of respect equal in stature to violin, piano or guitar. She is known for her high artistic abilities as well as her insistence on performing new works written for the instrument. For many years, nearly every major work for the instrument was written for, dedicated to or performed by her. In addition, she has a large body of her own marimba compositions.