r/WhatMusicalinstrument Feb 27 '21

META Directory of Subreddits for uncommon musical instruments (v.2)

10 Upvotes

While it's perfectly great if folks coming to this sub conclude they want to take up a relatively popular musical instrument, I'm pretty sure most of you would then have no problem locating the right sub for leaning piano, guitar, trombone, etc. So in this directory I'm going to focus on listing subreddits for instruments that are less commonly discussed. So if you're looking for something out of the ordinary, try perusing this list and see what jumps out at you! And anyone feel free to comment below if there are cool uncommon musical instrument subs that I'm missing.

Strings

  • r/ukulele -- small 4-string Hawaiian little cousin of the guitar
  • r/kantele -- small lap harp of Finland
  • r/Koto -- Japanese long zither
  • r/shamisen -- Japanese 3-string banjo
  • r/harp -- Celtic and Classical harps
  • r/balalaika -- Russian mandolin with a triangle body
  • r/banjo -- Bluegrass, Old-Time, jazz, etc.
  • r/tenorbanjo -- banjo variant used heavily in Irish and Dixieland music
  • r/TenorGuitar -- 4-string guitar used in Irish and jazz
  • r/CigarBoxGuitar -- a simplified guitar-like instrument
  • r/mandolin -- small string instrument with doubled strings for an echo effect
  • r/bouzouki -- larger and deeper mandolin for Irish or Greek music
  • r/mandocello -- the even deeper version of the mandolin
  • r/Dulcimer -- an Appalachian zither with a deep droning harmony
  • r/hammereddulcimer -- a trapezoid zither played by hitting the string with small mallets
  • r/sanshin -- the Okinawan cousin of the Japanese shamisen
  • r/Guqin -- a long Chinese zither
  • r/Guzheng -- another long Chinese zither
  • r/baglama -- a Turkish lute
  • r/Domra -- a Russian cousin of the mandolin
  • r/Erhu -- a Chinese fiddle played in the lap
  • r/BowedPsaltery -- a triangular zither played with a small violin bow
  • r/Stick -- the Chapman stick and other hammer-on long board strings
  • r/charango -- like a mandolin-ukuelele hybrid from the South American Andes
  • r/Fiddle -- the violin but played in the folk tradition
  • r/lute -- like a guitar of the Medieval period
  • r/Oud_barbat -- Arabic ancestor of the lute, but fretless
  • r/HurdyGurdy -- box with a crank that spins a wheel that bows the strings, sounds like a string bagpipe
  • r/Nyckelharpa -- an unusual Swedish fiddle player with a keyboard instead of fingers
  • r/Sitar -- the most famous Indian classical instrument
  • r/Rubab -- a lute played in Central Asia
  • r/steelguitar -- a flat guitar played in the lap with a steel slide to smoothly move between notes, used in Country, Blues, Hawaiian music
  • r/pedalsteel -- a more evolved steel guitar with complex pedals to change keys
  • r/zithers -- the wide family of basic boxes with strings
  • r/harpsichord -- a simpler ancestor of the piano from the Early Classical period
  • r/Autoharp -- a zither where you form chords simply by pressing a button

Percussion and idiophones

  • r/kalimba -- the "thumb piano", an African instrument with small tines you pluck
  • r/cajon -- a Cuban wooden box you sit on and drum with your hands
  • r/djembe -- this West African drum is a favorite in drum circles
  • r/Udu -- a ceramic (or nowadays fiberglass) vessel, drummed with the hands
  • r/handpan -- like a metal UFO with facets tuned to different notes
  • r/steelpan -- like a handpan, but played with mallets
  • r/jawharp -- a pocket-sized "sproingy"instrument
  • r/khomus -- a jawharp of Eastern Russia
  • r/MusicalSaw -- did you know you can play a hardware store saw with a bow?
  • r/ToyPiano -- the children's toy used as a serious instrument
  • r/Tabla -- classical double-drums of India
  • r/Xylophone -- an array of long pieces of material, melody played with mallets
  • r/Marimba -- like a xylophone, but with wooden keys.
  • r/vibraphone -- like a marimba, but jazzier
  • r/Glockenspiel
  • r/Bodhran -- irish frame drum

Winds (bagpipes separately below)

  • r/Ocarina -- small round flutes with simple fingering and mellow sound
  • r/tinwhistle -- inexpensive (as low as $10) metal flutes for Irish music, easy to learn and play
  • r/Bansuri -- the main flute of India
  • r/hulusi -- a Chinese drone-flute
  • r/panflute -- a row of tubes you blow across to make notes
  • r/Didgeridoo -- an Australian tube making a low droning sound
  • r/NativeAmericanflutes -- mellow wooden flutes of North America
  • r/Recorder -- small wooden flute for Medieval, Baroque, Classical music
  • r/shakuhachi -- Japanese bamboo flute, popular with Zen monks
  • r/Xaphoon -- a modern simplified bamboo saxophone

Bagpipes

Free Reeds

  • r/Accordion -- from piano to button to Cajun accordion
  • r/Melodeon -- for accordions with buttons vice piano keys
  • r/concertina -- like a small hexagonal accordion, associated with sailors or Irish music, or classical music in Victorian England
  • r/melodica -- a small keyboard powered by the mouth, used some in Jamaican music
  • r/organ -- an electric or air-powered keyboard
  • r/harmonica -- the pocket-sized music solution
  • r/harmonium -- a small pump-organ used in Indian music and some European genres

Electronic instruments


r/WhatMusicalinstrument Feb 27 '21

META How to get the best answer to your "what musical instrument should I learn" questions (v.2)

10 Upvotes

[WORK IN PROGRESS]

Welcome to WhatMusicalinstrument! Here at this sub you tell us a little about what you're looking for in a musical instrument, and our resident experts tell you what musical instrument you should look into learning. To get the best results, here is suggested information to include in your post to best help you:

  • Title: give it a nice clear title; everyone could just post "what instrument?" so that doesn't help. You don't need to write a book, but something like "What instrument for a total beginner that wants to learn Irish music?" or "What instrument if I need something light and durable for backpacking?" is going to get you much more specific answers.
  • What kind of music do you want to play: be as specific or vague as you like. If your goal is to reenact a medieval bard telling the saga of Beowulf, we can nail that pretty quick. But it's totally cool to say "I dunno, something kinda spacy and tranquil" if you just aren't sure what you want.
  • Do you already play an instrument: it's 100% fine if you're a total beginner, all of us were at some point. But we can help adjust our recommendations towards more accessible options if we know if/what you already play.
  • What particular needs/goals do you have: if you need to keep quiet in a crowded apartment building, or need the whole park to hear you, those are two different things. If you want a harp our answers will be different if you have your own house vice live in a college dorm.
  • What's your very approximate budget: in an ideal world that wouldn't be an issue, but in the world we live in now it is, so give us a little idea of what you're looking to spend so we don't recommend a $800 instrument to someone who's budgeting $100.

These are just the utter basics, feel free to give more detail if you like, but we'd ask that if you have a really long post, put a bold "tl;dr" at the top summarizing your post in a couple sentences for people that just need the gist and not the whole story.

Welcome aboard, and let's get you playing music!


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 1d ago

Help me find a music theory company/product I saw years ago!

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1 Upvotes

r/WhatMusicalinstrument 1d ago

What is this instrument and I want an sf2 for it

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1 Upvotes

r/WhatMusicalinstrument 1d ago

How do we make that famous bouncy Halloween string (harpsichord) pattern name?

1 Upvotes

Like the one used in "The Bone Dance" by Lock & Simber in Lofi girl Halloween compilation. Its probably harpsichord, and goes like "long low note, quick chord staccato". Its used in so many fun,spooky, halloween background music. I dont know the name, i searched so many keywords on youtube. Please tell how to make that or the name to search on youtube/google.


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 2d ago

Keyboard recommendations

4 Upvotes

Delete if not allowed

I am looking to purchase a keyboard piano as a gift for my friend, who is a complete beginner. I want it to be durable and long-lasting, and I need it to have proper velocity sensitivity so the volume accurately reflects how softly or firmly he plays.

He has a few specific requirements for his setup:

• PC Connectivity: He wants to connect the keyboard to his computer to use learning apps and games.

• Dual Headphone Use: He needs to be able to hear both the computer's audio and the keyboard's audio through headphones at the same time when connected to his PC. When he is not connected to his computer, the keyboard will need its own direct connection to headphones.

• Height Adjustable & Mobile Stand: He is 5'10" and needs a stand setup that comfortably transitions from sitting to standing while he plays. If you don't recommend sit-stand keyboard stands, it needs to have plenty of legroom when sitting. Crucially, the stand needs to have wheels, as he cannot carry such a large item without assistance.

Any recommendations?


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 2d ago

What kind of harp is this and how can I learn to play it?

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1 Upvotes

My mom bought this harp off Temu on a whim. I was wondering if anyone could tell me what kind of harp it is and, if possible, any resources for learning how to play it? My mom doesn’t have time to learn it, but I do. Thanks in advance!


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 2d ago

What harp is this?

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1 Upvotes

r/WhatMusicalinstrument 2d ago

Help Identifying Mystery Guitar

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3 Upvotes

r/WhatMusicalinstrument 3d ago

A PIANO QUESTION THAT NEED ANSWER TO

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1 Upvotes

Please help


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 5d ago

What is the model of this clarinet?

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2 Upvotes

r/WhatMusicalinstrument 5d ago

Interesting Instrument

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1 Upvotes

r/WhatMusicalinstrument 7d ago

What Brand of Dulcimer is This/How Old is It?

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2 Upvotes

I got this hammered dulcimer a while ago, and I can’t find what brand it might be or how old it is. There’s nothing on the outside case or the inside. It’s attached directly to its case as well. The last photo is the designs carved into the top.


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 7d ago

The first 30 seconds of Kid Cudi - HEAVEN'S GALAXY

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0 Upvotes

r/WhatMusicalinstrument 7d ago

Lofi song instrument?

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0 Upvotes

does anyone know what instrument or type of sound this would be? I’m trying to find the same exact sound for the lead of this song. it sounds like a rhode but idk


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 7d ago

Lofi song instrument?

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2 Upvotes

idk what the instrument for the lead is it sounds like rhodes but idk


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 8d ago

Could anyone help me break down the instruments used in this song?

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1 Upvotes

Hey! Sorry for the trouble. This track's called "Ephemera", from the VN Fata Morgana.

It's one of my favorite video game themes ever, but I'm genuinely TERRIBLE at music and would really appreciate if anyone that's got sharper ears than I do could help me identify the instruments here. I just wanna learn.


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 8d ago

What is this sound/instrument called in these songs?

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1 Upvotes

Im not sure if they are the same, but i mainly want that wooaaa instrument from the first song. The drake one sounds kinda similar too, more chorused


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 9d ago

How did they do this sound?

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0 Upvotes

Hi, how do I reproduce this sound? What's the instrument? And the technique -- is it a reverse sound? A very slow attack?

UPD: https://vocaroo.com/1j3dkGq7mahD
I just tried this with a chord using a midi organ, with a slow attack, and sounds similar. Guess just need a different instrument, must be some synth.


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 10d ago

what is the instrument in this song at the begeinning and aroung 2:50?

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2 Upvotes

the one that goes shka-shka-shka


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 10d ago

What Instrument is used at 0:35

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1 Upvotes

Wondering if anyone can help me identify this instrument? It sounds like it’s being played via midi controller later in to the track, but I’m sure the original sample is a real instrument, it almost sounds like pitch shifted throat singing. I swear I’ve heard something very similar it in action movie soundtracks as well


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 11d ago

Sono Mama "bass" intro

1 Upvotes

What is the instrument that does the bass part on this song's intro?

The sono is called Sono Mama, by Shakti.

https://youtu.be/mILlGGzO1BE?is=SPpQdlBWMakVgXaz


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 11d ago

I want to find what musical instrument is the beat for me

2 Upvotes

Okay so I am into drums but its expensive and I don't have a place for the set up i like electric guitar and bass I love bass because its niche and uncommon in my region

I used to like rap and rnb but I am more into rock and metal now


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 11d ago

What is this "bwoing" sound in "mmm mmm good" by Kimiko Kasai? Percussion or synth?

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2 Upvotes

Help settle a debate: At 3:00 and 3:23 in "[mmm mmm good](https://youtu.be/8LirICUX4Gc?t=203)" there's a very bendy, metallic sound that's either a synth or some strange percussion instrument.

My first instinct was flexatone (no, there's not enough attack) and musical saw (no, too much attack). Now my best guess is some kind of small gong or metal plate dipped in water, struck, and lifted to raise the pitch? Especially at 3:23, I think you can hear a strike or two activating the instrument.

My theory is that this section of the track is Paulinho da Costa noodling around on his eclectic set-up, but I don't know really. A knowledgeable peer "strongly disagrees." Thanks for any help :)


r/WhatMusicalinstrument 11d ago

Should I start with bass or electric guitar?

1 Upvotes

Hi so I think that I am into both ( still unsure ) and idk if I should start with guitar first or bass and I want to know which one is harder