Here you’ll find 19 Musical instruments that start with Q that begin with Q, organized from “Qanbus” to “Quinton”. These entries are named, playable instruments and regional variants. They serve in folk, classical, and ceremonial settings.
Musical instruments that start with Q are a varied group of playable items. They include famous examples like the qanun zither and the Andean quena flute, showing wide cultural reach.
Below you’ll find the table with family, origin, and materials.
Family: Briefly indicates instrument classification (for example, string, wind, or percussion), helping you locate similar instruments quickly.
Origin: Tells you country, region, and era where the instrument developed, giving cultural and historical context for use.
Materials: Lists the principal construction materials so you can understand sound sources and practical considerations for playing or care.
Musical instruments that start with Q
| Name | Family | Origin | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qanun | Plucked box zither | Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, medieval–modern | Wood, gut/nylon strings, metal, fish skin |
| Qin | Plucked board zither | China, ancient (over 3,000 years old) | Paulownia wood, silk/nylon-metal strings, lacquer |
| Qeej | Free-reed mouth organ | Hmong people of Southeast Asia and China | Bamboo pipes, hardwood windchest, copper reeds |
| Quena | End-blown notch flute | Andes region of South America, pre-Columbian–modern | Bamboo, cane, bone, wood |
| Quenacho | End-blown notch flute | Andes region of South America, modern | Bamboo, cane, wood |
| Quijada | Struck/scraped idiophone | Latin America (especially Peru, Mexico), colonial era–modern | Donkey or horse jawbone |
| Quinto | Hand drum (membranophone) | Cuba, 20th century | Wood/fiberglass body, animal skin head |
| Qilaut | Frame drum (membranophone) | Inuit peoples of the Arctic (Canada, Greenland) | Wood/bone frame, caribou/seal skin |
| Qanbus | Short-necked fretless lute | Yemen, Southeast Asia | Wood, animal skin, gut/nylon strings |
| Qudum | Kettledrum (membranophone) | Turkey, Ottoman era–modern | Copper bowls, camel/goat skin |
| Qraqeb | Clapper/castanet idiophone | Morocco (Maghreb region) | Iron, steel |
| Qasaba | End-blown reed flute | North Africa (Maghreb region) | Reed, cane |
| Qopuz | Bowed/plucked spike lute | Central Asia (Turkic peoples) | Wood, skin, horsehair strings |
| Qornay | Natural trumpet (aerophone) | Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Tajikistan) | Brass, copper |
| Quart-fagott | Double-reed woodwind | Europe, 19th century | Maple, metal keys |
| Quinticlave | Keyed bugle (aerophone) | France, early 19th century | Brass, metal keys, leather pads |
| Quinton | Bowed string (viol family) | France, 18th century | Wood, gut strings |
| Quinto guitar | Plucked chordophone (guitar family) | Spain, Mexico | Wood, nylon/gut strings |
| Quadrangularis | Bell (idiophone) | Europe, medieval period | Iron, bronze |
Descriptions
Qanun
A large trapezoidal zither played on the lap. Its strings are plucked with finger picks, and small metal levers can change the pitch of strings mid-performance.
Qin
A quiet, seven-stringed zither associated with scholars and contemplation. It has no frets or bridges and is played using a rich vocabulary of slides and harmonics.
Qeej
A complex mouth organ with multiple long bamboo pipes and a windchest. It plays a crucial role in Hmong ritual ceremonies, capable of mimicking tones of Hmong speech.
Quena
A traditional vertical flute of the Andes, known for its breathy, evocative tone. It lacks a fipple (whistle mouthpiece), so the player shapes the sound with their embouchure.
Quenacho
A larger, lower-pitched version of the quena flute. Its deep, resonant sound provides the bass voice in traditional Andean ensembles.
Quijada
The dried jawbone of a donkey or horse. It’s played by striking it to make the teeth rattle or scraping a stick along the teeth for a guiro-like sound.
Quinto
The smallest and highest-pitched of the three main conga drums. In Afro-Cuban rumba, the quinto player is the lead soloist, playing complex, improvisational rhythms.
Qilaut
A large, single-headed frame drum, also called an Inuit drum. It’s used in ceremonial drum dancing and singing and is uniquely struck on the wooden rim, not the head.
Qanbus
A fretless lute carved from a single block of wood, related to the oud. It has a distinctive skin-covered soundbox and is central to traditional music in Yemen.
Qudum
A pair of small, high-pitched kettledrums used in Turkish classical and Mevlevi (Sufi) ceremonial music. They are played with two small mallets called ‘zahme’.
Qraqeb
Large, metal hand-cymbals or castanets used in Gnawa music of Morocco. Their clanking, rhythmic sound is a driving force in spiritual trance ceremonies.
Qasaba
A long, end-blown flute made from reed, common in the traditional music of North Africa, particularly among the Berber people. It produces a breathy, airy tone.
Qopuz
An ancient two- or three-stringed instrument of Turkic peoples, considered an ancestor of many bowed instruments. It is central to epic storytelling and shamanic rituals.
Qornay
A very long, straight metal trumpet with no valves, used for ceremonial fanfares. Its powerful, low-pitched sound can carry over long distances.
Quart-fagott
A smaller version of the bassoon pitched a perfect fourth higher. It’s a rare instrument sometimes used in wind ensembles for a higher, more agile bassoon voice.
Quinticlave
An obsolete bass instrument of the keyed bugle family, shaped like a bassoon but made of brass. It was used in military bands before being replaced by valved instruments.
Quinton
A five-stringed hybrid instrument from the Baroque era, combining features of the violin (shape) and the viol family (fretted neck, sloped shoulders).
Quinto guitar
A small, five-string guitar, traditionally used in Mexican mariachi ensembles as a rhythm and harmony instrument. It is smaller than a standard Spanish guitar.
Quadrangularis
A type of early medieval handbell, distinctive for its four-sided, trapezoidal shape. These bells were often associated with early Celtic and Irish Christian saints.