Random Instrument Generator: 200 Instruments From Six Families
One press names an instrument and says how it makes its sound and which part of the world it comes from.
Random Instrument Generator: 200 Instruments From Six Families: how it works
This random instrument generator draws from a list of 200: strings, woodwind, brass, percussion, keyboards and electric instruments, each filed under the part of the world where it first took shape. Press New instrument and the card says in one line how the sound is made. Narrow the draw by family, region or both.
How the six families are sorted
Families go by how the sound starts, not by what the instrument is made of. A saxophone is metal, but a single reed makes its sound, so all four sit under Woodwind. The wooden alphorn and the didgeridoo sit under Brass because buzzing lips drive them. Keyboard holds anything played from keys or buttons, accordion included. Percussion takes whatever is struck, shaken or scraped, plus a few whose own body is plucked or rubbed: the mbira, the jaw harp, the glass harmonica.
Three ways to use a draw
Writing music: set the count to 3, lock the instrument you like and reroll the other two until you have a trio worth writing for. Teaching: put the instrument of the day on the board and ask the class its family before you open the card. Listening lesson: pair Percussion with Africa and compare the seven that come up.
Tips
Tap In the orchestra for the 35 instruments a symphony orchestra may call on, from violin and timpani to celesta and cor anglais. Add Brass and six are left.
Turn on Starts with for alphabet games. Every letter except I, Y and Z has at least one instrument, and X has the xylophone.
Save a draw to look up later. Its sound line is kept with it.
Questions and answers
Why is the piano under Keyboard and not Strings?
It could sit under either. Pressing a key throws a felt-covered hammer at the strings, and the Hornbostel-Sachs system, which sorts by what vibrates, counts pianos and harpsichords as string instruments. This page files it where most people look.
Why are there no brand-name instruments?
The list uses the everyday name for each kind of instrument. One sold under a single maker's current trade name is left out, and its kind is here instead: electric organ, electric piano, synthesizer, drum machine, sampler. Autoharp stays because the word, once a maker's mark, has long been the ordinary name.
Where do the facts on each card come from?
Each card's sound line and place of origin were checked against that instrument's Wikipedia article on 18 September 2026. Region means where the instrument first took shape, not everywhere it is played now, so the banjo sits under North America. Many regions is for instruments that grew up in several places, like the pan flute. The wording is our own.
All 200 instruments
Strings
Woodwind
Brass
Percussion
Keyboard
Electric and electronic
Strings 61
Acoustic guitar Steel strings, strummed or picked, give a brighter and louder sound than nylon. Appalachian dulcimer Three or four strings over a fretted box laid on the lap, strummed or plucked. Autoharp Strummed strings; pressing a chord bar mutes every string outside that chord. Bağlama A fretted lute with a long neck; its fret spacing gives steps close to quarter tones. Balalaika Three strings on a triangular hollow body, plucked or strummed with the fingers. Bandura Plucked, part zither and part lute; concert models have 56 to 68 strings. Banjo Plucked strings over a thin skin stretched on a round frame, like a drumhead. Bass guitar Usually four low strings and pickups on a long neck, played through an amplifier. Berimbau One string on a bow with a gourd, struck with a stick; a coin or stone changes the note. Biwa A short-necked wooden lute plucked with a large plectrum, used in storytelling. Bouzouki Steel strings in pairs on a long neck, played with a pick. Cello Bowed strings tuned an octave below the viola; the player sits with it upright. Celtic harp A triangular frame harp plucked with the fingers, once strung with wire. Charango A small lute, strummed or plucked, whose ten strings are set in five pairs. Cimbalom Metal strings across a large box on legs are struck with beaters; a pedal damps them. Classical guitar Fingers pluck six gut or nylon strings over a hollow wooden body. Concert zither Many strings over a thin, flat sound box; a few run above frets and carry the tune. Dan bau (đàn bầu) One string: the player plucks harmonics and bends the pitch with a flexible rod. Dombra A long-necked lute with two strings, plucked or strummed. Double bass The largest and lowest string instrument in the orchestra, bowed or plucked. Electric guitar Pickups turn the strings' vibration into a signal for an amplifier. Electric violin Pickups built into the violin feed an amplifier, and most models have a solid body. Erhu The bow hair passes between two strings on a small sound box covered in python skin. Gayageum A long zither with 12 plucked strings; every string sits on a bridge of its own that can be moved. Guqin Seven strings plucked with the fingers, played in China since ancient times. Guzheng A long plucked zither, usually with 21 strings over movable bridges. Hammered dulcimer Strings stretched over a trapezoid sound board are struck with small hammers. Hardanger fiddle Bowed like a violin, with four or five extra strings underneath that ring along. Hurdy-gurdy Turning a crank spins a rosined wheel against the strings, and keys change the note. Kamancheh A bowed spike fiddle, held upright like a cello though about as long as a viola. Kantele A box zither plucked with the fingers; the oldest kinds have five or six strings. Kora 21 strings plucked with the fingers over a gourd body; part harp, part lute. Koto A plucked zither about 180 cm long, with 13 strings over movable bridges. Lap steel guitar Laid flat across the lap; the player slides a steel bar over the strings instead of fretting. Lute Plucked strings on a neck joined to a deep round back, with or without frets. Lyre Strings run from a crossbar between two arms down to a sound box, and are plucked. Mandolin Eight strings in four pairs, plucked with a pick. Morin khuur A two-string fiddle bowed upright, with a carved horse head at the top of the neck. Ngoni Plucked strings over a wooden or calabash body with goat skin stretched across the top. Nyckelharpa Bowed strings; wooden keys along the neck push tangents against them to change note. Oud A short-necked, pear-shaped lute with no frets, usually 11 strings: five pairs and one single bass string. Pedal harp Fingers pluck 47 strings; seven foot pedals retune them to reach the sharps and flats. Pedal steel guitar A steel bar slides on the strings while pedals and knee levers retune them; heard by pickup. Pipa A pear-shaped lute with four strings, plucked with the fingers. Portuguese guitar Twelve steel strings in six pairs, plucked; the sound of fado. Qanun A flat zither played on the lap, plucked with a pick on each hand or with the fingernails. Resonator guitar The bridge passes string vibrations to spun metal cones instead of a wooden top. Santur A hammered dulcimer: light wooden mallets strike strings over a trapezoid box. Sarangi A short-necked bowed instrument said to sound like the human voice. Saraswati veena A large plucked lute with frets, played seated in South Indian classical music. Sarod A plucked lute with no frets, so notes can slide; sympathetic strings add echo. Shamisen Three strings over a skin-covered body, struck with a large pick called a bachi. Sitar Plucked with a wire pick, while sympathetic strings under the frets ring along. Tanpura Four open strings plucked in a steady loop to make a drone. It plays no melody. Tar A long-necked lute with an hourglass-shaped body, plucked with a small pick. Ukulele Four nylon strings strummed over a small guitar-shaped body. Valiha A tube zither: strings run the length of a bamboo tube and are plucked. Venezuelan cuatro Four nylon strings on a small guitar-shaped body, mostly strummed. Viol Bowed, fretted and usually six-stringed; it is held upright, resting on the legs or between them. Viola Bowed like a violin, but slightly larger, so its four strings sound lower. Violin A bow drawn across four strings makes them ring over a hollow wooden body.
Woodwind 38
Alto saxophone A single reed on a brass body pitched in E♭; the most common saxophone. Bansuri A side-blown flute made from one length of bamboo, with six or seven finger holes. Baritone saxophone The lowest saxophone in common use; a single reed drives a large brass body. Bass clarinet A single-reed clarinet that plays an octave below the usual B♭ clarinet. Bassoon A double reed on a bent metal tube drives a long wooden pipe folded back on itself. Clarinet A single reed vibrates against the mouthpiece of a nearly cylindrical tube. Contrabassoon A larger bassoon, double reed and all, that sounds an octave lower. Cor anglais A double reed like the oboe, roughly half as long again and pitched a fifth lower. Crumhorn A double reed inside a cap, so the lips never touch it; the tube curves like a hook. Daegeum A large side-blown bamboo flute with a buzzing membrane. Dizi A side-blown bamboo flute; a thin membrane over one hole adds a bright buzz. Duduk A large double reed drives a tube of apricot wood. Fife A small, high-pitched side-blown flute, played with drums in marching bands. Flute Side-blown: the player blows across a hole near one end of a metal or wooden tube. Great Highland bagpipe Air squeezed from a bag sounds a chanter for the tune, two tenor drones and a bass drone. Harmonica Blowing or drawing air through its holes makes free metal reeds vibrate. Khaen A mouth organ: bamboo pipes with free reeds set in a small hardwood air chest. Launeddas Three reed pipes blown at once with circular breathing: one drone and two for melody. Melodica Blowing through a mouthpiece while pressing keys sends air past free reeds. Native American flute Breath fills one chamber; a block on top steers it into the second, which sounds. Ney A cane or giant-reed flute with finger holes, blown at its open top end. Oboe Blowing through a double reed makes its two blades vibrate against each other. Ocarina A vessel flute: breath through a mouthpiece sounds the air inside a closed clay body. Pan flute Blow across the open tops of closed pipes of graded length, one pipe for each note. Piccolo A smaller flute, fingered the same way, that sounds an octave higher. Quena An end-blown flute: the player blows down across a notch cut in the rim. Recorder Blown through a whistle mouthpiece; seven holes for the fingers and one for the thumb. Shakuhachi An end-blown bamboo flute; the player blows across a sharp edge cut into the rim. Shawm A double reed on a conical wooden tube; the ancestor of the oboe. Shehnai A wooden pipe blown through a double reed, widening into a flared bell of metal or wood. Sheng A mouth organ of upright pipes, each with a free reed, that can play chords. Slide whistle A whistle with a piston inside; sliding it sweeps the pitch up or down. Soprano saxophone A single reed on a brass body, often built straight; the smallest common saxophone. Suona A double reed on a wooden tube with a flared metal bell, loud and high-pitched. Tenor saxophone A single reed on a brass body pitched in B♭, larger and lower than the alto. Tin whistle Blown through a whistle mouthpiece, with six finger holes. Uilleann pipes A bellows under the elbow fills the bag, so the piper does not blow. Wind controller An electronic wind instrument: breath and fingering are sensed and sent to a synthesizer.
Brass 20
Alphorn Lips buzz in a wooden cup mouthpiece on a straight wooden horn 3 to 4 metres long. Bugle No valves: the lips alone pick the notes out of the natural harmonic series. Conch A large sea snail shell blown like a horn; its natural cone-shaped bore makes the tone. Cornet Like a trumpet, but with a conical bore, a more compact shape and a mellower tone. Didgeridoo Vibrating lips make a steady drone, kept going without a break by circular breathing. Euphonium A valved brass in B♭, played with buzzed lips, sounding an octave lower than the trumpet. Flugelhorn Buzzed lips and valves like a trumpet, with a wider conical bore and a darker sound. French horn Lips buzz into coiled tubing that ends in a wide bell; rotary valves change the note. Mellophone A piston-valved brass in F that marching bands use where a French horn would play. Natural horn No valves: the player changes notes with the lips, crooks and a hand in the bell. Sackbut An early trombone with a slide, a narrower bore and a less flared bell. Serpent Lips buzz in a cup mouthpiece on a snake-shaped wooden tube with six finger holes. Shofar A ram's horn with no holes or valves; the lips alone set the pitch. Sousaphone A tuba that wraps around the player, with a bell pointing forward over the head. Tenor horn An E♭ saxhorn with three piston valves, heard in the inner harmonies of a British brass band. Tibetan horn A long metal trumpet, often played in pairs at Tibetan Buddhist ceremonies. Trombone Lips buzz in the mouthpiece, and a telescoping slide changes the length of the tube. Trumpet Lips buzz in a cup mouthpiece, and three valves change the length of the tube. Tuba Buzzed lips drive a wide conical tube with four or five valves, low and deep. Wagner tuba A brass with four valves, which the horn section usually plays.
Percussion 60
Agogô Two cone-shaped metal bells of different pitch, struck with a stick. Angklung Bamboo tubes tuned in octaves hang in a frame; shaking the frame sounds one note. Balafon A xylophone with a gourd under each wooden bar to make it ring. Bass drum A large drum with a head at each end, giving a low note. Bodhrán A goatskin frame drum struck with a small stick; a hand inside changes the tone. Bonang Rows of small bossed gongs resting on cords in a wooden frame, struck with padded sticks. Bongos Two small hand drums of unequal size, joined side by side and open underneath. Cajón A wooden box; the player slaps its thin front face with the hands. Carillon At least 23 bronze bells struck by clappers, played from wooden batons and pedals. Castanets Two hollowed shells of hardwood on a cord, clicked together in the hand. Claves Two short wooden sticks; one rests in the hand and the other strikes it with a bright click. Conga A tall, narrow drum with one head, built of staves like a barrel and played by hand. Cowbell A hand-held metal bell struck with a stick, named after the bells herders hang on cows. Cuíca A friction drum: rubbing a stick fixed inside the head makes a high squeak. Cymbals Thin round plates of copper alloy, clashed in pairs or struck with a stick. Daf A large frame drum with metal rings inside the rim, played with the fingers. Darbuka (goblet drum) A single skin on a goblet-shaped body, played with the fingers and palms. Dhol A double-headed drum hung from the shoulder and beaten with two sticks. Djembe A rope-tuned goblet drum with a skin head, played with bare hands. Drum kit One seated player works drums and cymbals with two sticks and two foot pedals. Electronic drums Pads with sensors send signals to a sound module that plays the drum sounds. Ghatam A clay pot struck with the palms, fingers, thumbs and heels of both hands. Glass harmonica Wet fingers rub the rims of glass bowls turning on a spindle. Glockenspiel Small steel or aluminium bars in a keyboard layout, struck with hard mallets. Gong A round metal disc, flat or bowl-like, struck with a mallet. Güiro A hollow gourd with notches along one side; a stick scraped over them makes the rasp. Handbell A bell rung by hand: a hinged clapper strikes the inside. Handpan Two steel half-shells glued together; tuned fields on the top are tapped by hand. Janggu An hourglass-shaped drum whose two heads give different pitches. Jaw harp A springy tongue of metal or bamboo in a frame is plucked, and the mouth shapes the sound. Kulintang A row of small gongs laid flat carries the tune, with hanging gongs and drums around it. Maracas A rattle shaken by its handle, usually one in each hand. Marimba Wooden bars struck with mallets, with a resonator pipe under each bar. Mbira (kalimba) Metal tines fixed to a wooden board are plucked with the thumbs and fingers. Mridangam A two-headed drum played with the hands, the main rhythm voice of Carnatic music. Musical saw A hand saw bent into an S-curve and bowed along its back edge; changing the curve changes the note. Pandeiro A hand frame drum with metal jingles in the rim and a head that can be tuned. Rainstick Pebbles or beans trickle past pins inside a long hollow tube when it is tipped. Ratchet A gearwheel on a handle flicks a stiff board as the player swings it round. Saron Seven bronze bars over a resonating frame, struck with a mallet. Shekere A dried gourd in a net of beads or cowries, shaken or slapped. Singing bowl A metal bowl that rings when struck, or sings when a mallet is rubbed around its rim. Sleigh bells Small round metal bells, each with a loose ball inside, shaken in bunches. Snare drum Wires held against the lower head rattle when a stick strikes the top head. Spoons Two spoons held back to back and knocked so that one hits the other. Steelpan A tuned dish hammered into the end of a steel drum, played with rubber-tipped sticks. Surdo A large bass drum, struck with a mallet, that plays the low parts in samba. Tabla Two hand drums; a spot of black paste on each head gives a clear pitch. Taiko Japanese drums of many sizes, struck with wooden sticks called bachi. Talking drum An hourglass drum; squeezing the cords between its two heads bends the pitch. Tambourine A hand-held frame with pairs of metal jingles, shaken or struck; many have a drumhead. Timbales Shallow metal-shelled drums with a head on top only; sticks play the shells as well as the heads. Timpani A skin stretched over a large copper bowl; a pedal changes the tension and the note. Triangle A metal bar bent into a triangle with one corner open, tapped with a small metal beater. Tubular bells Tuned metal tubes hung in a frame and struck near the top with a hammer. Udu A clay water jug with an extra hole in its side; striking the hole gives a deep bass note. Vibraphone Metal bars struck with mallets; motor-driven discs in the resonators add vibrato. Washboard A ribbed metal laundry board, tapped and scraped with thimbles. Woodblock A small block of hardwood with a slit cut into it, struck with a stick. Xylophone Wooden bars, each tuned to one note, struck with mallets.
Keyboard 16
Accordion Bellows push air past free reeds, and buttons or piano keys choose which reeds sound. Bandoneon A large concertina: pushing and pulling the bellows drives air through metal reeds. Celesta Keys work hammers that strike steel plates hung over wooden resonators. Clavichord Pressing a key lifts a small metal blade, called a tangent, that strikes the string. Concertina Bellows with buttons on both ends; squeezing drives air through free reeds. Digital piano Weighted keys trigger sampled or synthesised piano sound through built-in speakers. Electric organ An electronic keyboard first built to imitate the pipe organ and harmonium. Electric piano Hammers strike strings, reeds or tines, and pickups turn the vibration into a signal. Harmonium A pump organ: bellows send air over free metal reeds chosen from a keyboard. Harpsichord Pressing a key lifts a jack, and its small plectrum plucks a string. Keytar A light synthesizer keyboard worn on a strap and held like a guitar. Ondes Martenot An electronic tone steered from a keyboard or by sliding a ring along a wire. Piano Pressing a key throws a felt-covered hammer at the strings. Pipe organ Keys let pressurised air into ranks of pipes; each pipe sounds a single pitch. Synthesizer Circuits generate waveforms, then filters and envelopes shape them into sounds. Toy piano Small hammers strike round metal rods instead of strings.
Electric and electronic 5
Drum machine An electronic box that plays programmed drum beats with sampled or synthesised sounds. Laser harp The player blocks laser beams with the hands, and each blocked beam triggers a note. Sampler Records portions of sound and plays them back, often from a keyboard or pads. Theremin Two antennas sense the hands: one sets the pitch and one the volume. Nothing is touched. Turntables A DJ pushes and pulls a record under the needle and cuts the sound with a crossfader.
How this list was compiled: Instruments chosen from Wikipedia's List of musical instruments (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_musical_instruments ). Each line about how the sound is made, and each place of origin, was checked against that instrument's own Wikipedia article, linked in x.src. The sound-source class in x.hs follows the five top-level Hornbostel-Sachs classes (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel%E2%80%93Sachs ). The lip-buzzed horns under Brass follow https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brass_instrument , and the orchestra chip follows https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orchestra plus each instrument's own article. All checked 2026-09-18. Re-checked 2026-09-19 after review: the oud's usual 11 strings in six courses (five pairs and one single string) against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oud ; the handpan's Swiss forerunner, developed in Bern in 2000 and first shown in 2001, against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hang_(instrument ) and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handpan ; the banjo's early history against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banjo ; the vibraphone's maker against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leedy_Manufacturing_Company (an American firm in Indianapolis); Franklin building the glass harmonica with a London glassblower against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glass_harmonica ; the 1882 United States and 1885 German autoharp patents against https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autoharp . The region in x.region is where the instrument first took shape, not everywhere it is played now; Many regions is kept for instruments that grew up in several places or whose first home is not settled. Wording is our own: after the review, every card was compared by script with its article, and the 27 cards that shared a run of five or more words with it were rewritten, so no card now shares more than four. Licence: own work