Instrument Wheel
Spin for a random instrument, or press a family button to spin only brass or strings.
No spins yet. Each pick is listed here in order.
Instruments on the wheel, by family
Strings (12)
- Violin
- Viola
- Cello
- Double bass
- Harp
- Acoustic guitar
- Electric guitar
- Bass guitar
- Banjo
- Mandolin
- Ukulele
- Lute
Woodwinds (12)
- Flute
- Piccolo
- Recorder
- Fife
- Clarinet
- Bass clarinet
- Oboe
- English horn
- Bassoon
- Contrabassoon
- Alto saxophone
- Tenor saxophone
Brass (11)
- Trumpet
- Cornet
- Flugelhorn
- French horn
- Mellophone
- Trombone
- Bass trombone
- Euphonium
- Tuba
- Sousaphone
- Bugle
Percussion (14)
- Snare drum
- Bass drum
- Drum kit
- Timpani
- Cymbal
- Gong
- Triangle
- Tambourine
- Maraca
- Wood block
- Cowbell
- Xylophone
- Marimba
- Glockenspiel
Keyboards (6)
- Piano
- Pipe organ
- Harpsichord
- Clavichord
- Accordion
- Harmonium
About the instrument wheel
All 55 instruments are on the wheel when the page opens. They are sorted into 5 families: strings, woodwinds, brass, percussion and keyboards. Each family has its own button, and no instrument appears in more than one of them.
The list was written for this site, and each name was checked against an encyclopedia that has an article about that instrument. The wheel plays none of their sounds. A slice holds only a name, and the one sound on the page is the ticking of the wheel, which “Sound on” turns off.
For an instrument of the week, open one family with “Remove the winner after each spin” switched on and spin five times on Monday. Each pick leaves the wheel when its result window closes, so the five school days get five different instruments. Write them on the board in the order they came up.
Music class ideas with a random instrument
- A listening game: the teacher spins without showing the screen, plays a clip of that instrument, and students guess its name.
- A report topic: each student spins once with the winner removed, so every report covers a different instrument.
- A drawing prompt for band kids: spin Brass or Woodwinds and sketch the instrument from memory.
- A songwriting nudge: spin once and write the next song around whatever instrument comes up.
How to use the wheel
- Type or paste your options, one per line. The wheel redraws as you type.
- Press Spin, click the wheel, or press Ctrl+Enter while you are in the list.
- Read the pick. Remove it from the wheel if nobody should be picked twice, then spin again.
How the pick is made
Before the wheel moves, your browser draws one slice at random with crypto.getRandomValues, the same generator browsers use for security keys. Every slice has the same chance. The spin you watch only plays that result out.
Nothing about the animation changes the outcome: not how hard you click, not how long the wheel turns, not the size of your screen. The pointer always stops inside a slice, never on a line.
Your list stays in your browser. A link you copy carries the list inside the link itself, so nothing is uploaded.
Questions about the instrument wheel
- Does the wheel play the sound of each instrument?
- No. It shows the name only, and the ticking is the one sound it makes. To hear the pick, find a recording of that instrument after you spin.
- Can I spin only one family, like brass?
- Yes. Press “Brass” and the wheel holds just those 11. Press “All 55 instruments” to put every family back.
- Can I add the instruments from my own band?
- Yes. Type each one on its own line, and the wheel redraws with a slice for it. The edited list stays in this browser for this page.
- How do I give my class a wheel of only our band’s instruments?
- Press “Clear list”, type the instruments your band has, then press “Copy link to this wheel”. Anyone who opens that link sees the same list.