Top 13 Popular and Unique Electronic Music Instruments

Let’s begin with a brief definition. An electronic musical instrument, also known as an electrophone, is any musical instrument that produces or modifies sounds using electronic circuitry — meaning by electric and often electronic means.

Unlike traditional acoustic instruments, electronic instruments generate electric, electronic, or digital audio signals that are plugged into a power amplifier, which drives a loudspeaker, thus creating the sound heard by both the performer and listener.

Additionally, instruments that generate sounds by acoustic or mechanical means but amplify them electrically or electronically, such as the digital guitar or digital piano, are considered electronic music instruments, too.

Generally, electronic music instruments come in different shapes and sizes, each with its own unique sound, features, and characteristics. Some of them might feature a user interface, allowing the player to control the sound, often by adjusting and shaping the pitch, frequency, or duration of the tone. A common example of such a user interface is an electronic musical keyboard, which functions similarly to a classical piano yet creates sounds through a connected digital or electronic sound generator, like a computer or synth module.

However, some instruments do not have a user interface and simply offer sound-generating functions. Such instruments include, for example, a synthesizer or a controller, both of which communicate with a musical performance description language, such as MIDI or open sound system.

As for the application, electronic musical instruments are now widely used in most styles and genres, both in and beyond electronic music. In popular music styles, like electronic dance music (EDM), almost all music sounds used in recordings are generated by electronic instruments.

A synthesizer, also known as a synth, is an electronic musical instrument that creates audio signals by generating waveforms through various forms of analog and digital sound synthesis. These sounds may then be augmented and sculpted through a variety of components, including filters, envelopes, and low-frequency oscillators, altering the frequency, articulation, volume, pitch, timbre, and more.

The first commercially available synthesizer was the so-called ‘Moog synthesizer’ developed by the American engineer Robert Moog in 1964. His invention was also credited for introducing concepts like noise generation, voltage-controlled oscillation, filtering, and sequencing. Its smaller and cheaper version, called ‘Minimoog,’ standardized synthesizers as self-sufficient instruments with incorporated keyboards.

Overall, synthesizers are most commonly played with keyboards or controlled by sequencers, computer software, or other instruments synchronized to other equipment via MIDI.

A MIDI controller is an input device that can be plugged into your set-up, like a computer or other device, via MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface). MIDI can be defined as a standardized communication protocol that allows computers, musical instruments, and other hardware to communicate.

This is facilitated by the MIDI controller sending MIDI data and commands to other devices, thus triggering sounds from external resources. Ultimately, a MIDI controller allows you to ‘control’ music hardware or software similarly to how one uses a keyboard and a mouse to control a computer.

MIDI controllers come in different shapes and sizes, ranging from MIDI keyboards to Fader controllers, DJ controllers, and drum pads.

A music sequencer is an electronic music tool, either hardware- or software-based, that allows users to record, program, edit, and play back sequences of music events, such as notes, rhythms, effects, and control changes over a specific period of time.

The sequencer has played a formative role in the music production process, operating as a canvas for musical ideation and creation. You can use it to arrange and format both MIDI and audio files.

A sampler is an electronic music device used to record and play back sound segments, known as samples, which can include elements like melody, rhythm, sound effects, or longer music sections.

The music industry first experienced the invention of keyboard instruments that played pre-recorded tape sounds, such as the Mellotron developed in 1963. With technological advances, more affordable samplers with greater memory capacity emerged, such as the Akai 950, Akai MPC, and E-mu Emulator.

Modern samplers now offer filters, effects, modulation, and other synthesizer-like features, allowing the user to augment and enhance the original recorded sound. Additionally, most samples are monotimbral, playing back different sounds simultaneously, and polyphonic, capable of playing several notes at the same time.

A digital guitar is a perfect example of a traditionally acoustic instrument that converts the vibrations it creates (in this case, using strings) into digital data. Such digital data is then processed by a digital signal processor and converted into an audio signal that can be amplified and played via a speaker or headphones.

A groovebox is a self-contained electronic or digital instrument designed for producing live, loop-based electronic music. It offers a high level of user control and is thus great for improvisation. Traditionally, a groovebox combines one or more sound sources (such as a drum machine, sampler, or synthesizer), a sequencer, and a control surface (featuring buttons/control knobs, sliders, and potentially display elements like LEDs or LCD screen).

The first groovebox was the Roland MC-303, commercially released in 1996. The Japanese company was also credited for coining the term ‘groovebox,’ which became widely adopted after the MC-303’s debut.

A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to create percussion sounds, drum beats, and rhythmic patterns. Typically, a drum machine already comes with pre-recorded samples of beats and patterns common for popular genres and styles, like dance, pop, or rock music.

However, the more modern drum machines can go beyond sampled sounds and generate unique sounds, such as synthesized electronic sounds, using analog synthesis techniques.

The theremin is undoubtedly one of the most fascinating electronic instruments used and controlled entirely without physical contact by the performer, the thereminist. The instrument, invented and patented by Leon Theremin in 1928, traditionally uses two antennas that operate as position sensors.

These antennas used so-called ‘capacitive sensing’ to detect the relative position of the thereminist’s hands and control oscillators for frequency with one hand, and the volume (amplitude) with the other hand. The electronic signals created by the theremin are then amplified and sent to a loudspeaker, generating sounds.

Most commonly, the theremin has been widely used in movie soundtracks, including Justin Hurwitz’s First Man or Natalie Holt’s Loki. Additionally, the instrument has been used in concert music, for instance, in concerts held by a popular American thereminist, Mano Divina Giannone, and his orchestra, the Divine Hand Ensemble.

The Omnichord, debuted in 1981 by the Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation, is another unique electronic music instrument. Originally designed as an electronic version of Autoharp, it allows users to play distinctive harp-like arpeggios, where individual notes are played in a progressive rising or descending order. These arpeggios are generated through an electronic strum plate, mimicking the experience of playing a string instrument.

Overall, Omnichord gained recognition for its portability, unique timbre, and retro appeal. While the production of the original instruments ended in 1996 with the OM-300 model, the instrument experienced a surge in popularity in recent years. As a result, a new Omnichord model called the OM-108 is set to be released in 2024.

The Lyricon, an electronic wind instrument developed by engineer Bill Bernardi in the early 1970s, is recognized as the first wind controller or wind synthesizer.

Traditionally, a Lyricon was available in two distinct designs — a silver version, resembling a soprano saxophone, and a black version, mimicking an alto clarinet. Using a form of additive audio synthesis, the instrument allowed users to shift between various overtones. It also featured a bass clarinet mouthpiece and controls for glissando, portamento, and ‘timbre attack’ (a type of chorusing).

Approximately 400-600 units of different Lyricon models were produced by Computone Inc. before the company closed. As the Lyricon’s inventor passed away in 2014, the number of functioning instruments has since reduced considerably.

In comparison to the rest, the Skoog is a relatively new addition to the world of electronic musical instruments, initially released in 2008. The Skoog was designed to be customizable, inclusive, and accessible — particularly to individuals who may not be able to play conventional musical instruments. As a result, it has found its primary use in special needs education and music therapy.

Design-wise, the Skoog is shaped like a soft cube that can be plugged into a computer via USB, MIDI controller, or a sampler, running its accompanying software powered by physical modeling technology. Such software allows players to translate their expressive gestures directly into sound, making it a highly interactive and adaptable instrument.

The halldorophone, also known as dorophone, is a distinctive electronic instrument resembling a cello, created by Icelandic artist and designer Halldór Úlfarsson. The device generates sounds through positive feedback, designed specifically to feedback the sound of strings.

The halldorophone gained significant attention in 2020 when composer Hildur Guðnadóttir featured it in her Academy Award-winning soundtrack to the movie Joker.