types:
bass
the member with the lowest range of a family of musical instruments
calliope,
steam organ
a musical instrument consisting of a series of steam whistles played from a keyboard
jew's harp,
jews' harp,
mouth bow
a small lyre-shaped musical instrument that is placed between the teeth and played by twanging a wire tongue while changing the shape of the mouth cavity
music box,
musical box
produces music by means of pins on a revolving cylinder that strike the tuned teeth of a comb-like metal plate
wind,
wind instrument
a musical instrument in which the sound is produced by an enclosed column of air that is moved by the breath
percussion
the group of instruments that are played by striking with a hand or object
banjo
a stringed instrument of the guitar family that has long neck and circular body
bass guitar
the guitar with (usually four) strings that has the lowest pitch
bones,
castanets,
clappers,
finger cymbals
a percussion instrument consisting of a pair of hollow pieces of wood or bone (usually held between the thumb and fingers) that are made to click together (as by Spanish dancers) in rhythm with the dance
brass,
brass instrument
a wind instrument that consists of a brass tube (usually of variable length) that is blown by means of a cup-shaped or funnel-shaped mouthpiece
celesta
a musical instrument consisting of graduated steel plates that are struck by hammers activated by a keyboard
bell,
chime,
gong
a percussion instrument consisting of a set of tuned bells that are struck with a hammer; used as an orchestral instrument
chordophone
a stringed instrument of the group including harps, lutes, lyres, and zithers
clavichord
an early stringed instrument like a piano but with more delicate sound
cymbal
a percussion instrument consisting of a concave brass disk; makes a loud crashing sound when hit with a drumstick or when two are struck together
drum,
membranophone,
tympan
a musical percussion instrument; usually consists of a hollow cylinder with a membrane stretched across each end
dulcimer
a stringed instrument used in American folk music; an elliptical body and a fretted fingerboard and three strings
glockenspiel,
orchestral bells
a percussion instrument consisting of a set of graduated metal bars mounted on a frame and played with small hammers
gong,
tam-tam
a percussion instrument consisting of a metal plate that is struck with a softheaded drumstick
guitar
a stringed instrument usually having six strings; played by strumming or plucking
kazoo
a toy wind instrument that has a membrane that makes a sound when you hum into the mouthpiece
koto
Japanese stringed instrument that resembles a zither; has a rectangular wooden sounding board and usually 13 silk strings that are plucked with the fingers
lagerphone
an Australian percussion instrument used for playing bush music; a long stick with bottle caps nailed loosely to it; played by hitting it with a stick or banging it on the ground
maraca
a percussion instrument consisting of a hollow gourd containing pebbles or beans; often played in pairs
ocarina,
sweet potato
egg-shaped terra cotta wind instrument with a mouthpiece and finger holes
organ,
pipe organ
wind instrument whose sound is produced by means of pipes arranged in sets supplied with air from a bellows and controlled from a large complex musical keyboard
forte-piano,
piano,
pianoforte
a keyboard instrument that is played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike tuned strings and produce sounds
pipe
a tubular wind instrument
post horn
wind instrument used by postilions of the 18th and 19th centuries
psaltery
an ancient stringed instrument similar to the lyre or zither but having a trapezoidal sounding board under the strings
rain stick
a percussion instrument that is made from a dried cactus branch that is hollowed out and filled with small pebbles and capped at both ends; makes the sound of falling rain when tilted; origin was in Chile where tribesmen used it in ceremonies to bring rain
samisen,
shamisen
a Japanese stringed instrument resembling a banjo with a long neck and three strings and a fretted fingerboard and a rectangular soundbox; played with a plectrum
sitar
a stringed instrument of India; has a long neck and movable frets; has 6 or 7 metal strings for playing and usually 13 resonating strings
steel drum
a concave percussion instrument made from the metal top of an oil drum; has an array of flattened areas that produce different tones when struck (of Caribbean origin)
synthesiser,
synthesizer
(music) an electronic instrument (usually played with a keyboard) that generates and modifies sounds electronically and can imitate a variety of other musical instruments
theremin
an electronic musical instrument; melodies can be played by moving the right hand between two rods that serve as antennas to control pitch; the left hand controls phrasing
triangle
a percussion instrument consisting of a metal bar bent in the shape of an open triangle
vibes,
vibraharp,
vibraphone
a percussion instrument similar to a xylophone but having metal bars and rotating disks in the resonators that produce a vibrato sound
whistle
a small wind instrument that produces a whistling sound by blowing into it
cither,
zither,
zithern
a musical stringed instrument with strings stretched over a flat sounding board; it is laid flat and played with a plectrum and with fingers