Every musical instrument is unique, with its own shape, sound, and instrument family. There are four main types of musical instruments broken into families: string, woodwind, brass, and percussion. Take a peek below for more information on each musical instrument family.
Plus, Get Our Free Jeopardy-Style Musical Instrument Game!
Grab our free Musical Instrument Trivia Game! Students of all ages will enjoy playing this Jeopardy-style game where they can work together to guess the type of musical instrument from given clues.
How To Use the Game
The game is available on Google Slides and is perfect for classroom use!
- Divide your class into two teams to compete in the Jeopardy-style game.
- Students will select a category with a point value and then work together to choose the correct instrument that matches the clue.
- Add up points for correctly answered questions on the board, and be sure to cross out the categories that were already used!
String Instruments
String instruments produce sound by vibrating strings using a bow or plucking them with your fingers. Examples include the violin, viola, banjo, guitar, harp, cello, bass, mandolin, and ukulele.
Woodwind Instruments
Woodwind instruments are made of narrow cylinders or pipes. They are played by blowing air through the mouthpiece or across it while opening and closing holes with your fingers to change the sound. Examples of woodwind instruments include flute, piccolo, bagpipes, recorder, clarinet, saxophone, oboe, and bassoon.
Brass Instruments
Most brass instruments are made of silver or gold metals in various shapes. When playing a brass instrument, musicians vibrate or buzz their lips on the mouthpiece to create sound. Types of musical instruments within the brass family include trumpet, cornet, tuba, French horn, bugle, trombone, and baritone horn.
Percussion Instruments
Percussion instruments are usually struck or shaken to create sound and are often played to emphasize rhythm. Musical instruments in the percussion family include snare drum, cymbals, bass drum, chimes, tambourine, gong, maracas, and xylophone.
Don’t forget to learn even more about types of musical instruments and their families in our free Jeopardy-style game.
Just fill out the form on this page to get your free Musical Instruments Game!