TeachersFirst's Instruments and Vocal Music
Technology offers teachers many new opportunities in music and the arts. This collection highlights resources related to instruments and vocal music. Some tools in this curated list include virtual instruments, video tutorials, vocal instructions, and more. Share these resources during Music In the Schools Month or any other time throughout the year. Remember, our "In the Classroom" suggestions give you ideas about using these tools in your classroom.
See our complete list of musical instruments, musical notation, and music theory.

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Superior Singing Method YouTube Channel - Aaron Anastasi
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): music theory (43), songs (44), tutorials (48)
In the Classroom
Share videos and techniques from this site with all student singers and those who consider themselves non-singers. Focus on a weekly tip by sharing a video with students in class or your learning management system. In addition, this site may be beneficial when preparing for a holiday or year-end concerts to provide support and confidence to all students. Assist students in practicing vocals by sharing a recording tool like Vocaroo, reviewed here, to use for practice. Have students record vocals for their personal use to hear their voice as they sing and document progress using the shared tips from this site. Use Padlet, reviewed here, to curate a collection of the best videos to share with your students.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Singing Made Simple YouTube Channel - Roger Burnley
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): music theory (43), songs (44), tutorials (48)
In the Classroom
Share these video tips with vocal students and non-singers to practice and improve singing skills. Consider sharing a tip of the week a month or two before school concerts and programs to help students develop confidence in their performance. Ask students to record their singing using Online Voice Recorder, reviewed here, to promote personal development with vocal skills. Curate students' responses to the voice training activities using an online bulletin board such as Google Jamboard, reviewed here. Create a Jamboard for students to share tips that they find useful, add their additional suggestions, and share congratulations for continued practice with voice skills.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Blob Opera - Google Arts and Culture
Grades
K to 12tag(s): music theory (43)
In the Classroom
Share Blob Opera with students as an engaging way to experiment with the found included opera categories - tenor, bass, mezzo-soprano, and soprano. Ask students to record and share their experiments on your classroom webpage. Use Blob Opera as a brain break activity or stress-reliever for students (and teachers!).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Orli Shaham's Bach Yard - Orli Shaham
Grades
K to 4tag(s): crafts (50), makerspace (42), musical instruments (42), musical notation (34), rhythm (19)
In the Classroom
Use the activities found on this site to guide music lessons or integrate music into curricular areas. For example, use the lesson called Music and Animals to incorporate poetry and music into your animal unit. Gather the items found on the instrument making directions to create a maker space area for students to explore and experiment with different ways to create sounds. Ask students to document their steps with photographs, and when finished, ask students to create videos sharing their instruments using moovly, reviewed here. Create a digital class book using Book Creator, reviewed here, that includes all of the students' videos and other work created during your unit to share on your class website.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Groove Pizza - NYU Music Experience Design Lab
Grades
K to 12tag(s): musical notation (34), rhythm (19)
In the Classroom
Groove Pizza is an entertaining way for students to experiment with music. After building a sequence, have students paste the URL into this sheet music generator app to view their work in musical notation. Integrate Groove Pizza into Language Arts activities to teach counting syllables, recognizing rhythm in poetry, or creating rhythmic sounds to accompany reading materials. Use a screen recording tool like Free Screen Recorder Online, reviewed here, to create a short video demonstrating how to use Groove Pizza and share it with students. Enhance learning by asking older students to create their own demos and share their creations with their peers.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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boomy - Boomy Corporation
Grades
K to 12tag(s): artificial intelligence (15), music theory (43), rhythm (19), sounds (44)
In the Classroom
Offer students the option to explore their creative side with boomy. Ask students to make soothing music to play during study and quiet times, have them create audio to accompany their class presentations, or challenge students to make music that sets the mood for dramatic moments in literature. This site is an excellent way to appeal to your musically inclined students. Enhance student learning by asking them to share ideas on how to create different types of music by recording their screen using Free Screen Recorder Online, reviewed here. Have students share tips and advice on how to create different moods by adjusting settings within music created with boomy.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Hear the Music Play - Penni
Grades
6 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): musical instruments (42)
In the Classroom
Music teachers will definitely want to bookmark this site to use as a resource when selecting instruments for in-class use or use by band members. Share this site with parents looking for advice in choosing an instrument for their student. Have students use Hear the Music Play as a resource for researching different categories of musical instruments. Ask students to choose an instrument to research and to use Webnote, reviewed here, to note important information. Challenge them to then share their findings using using Google Drawings, reviewed here. Google Drawings allows you to annotate an image with links to videos, text, websites, and more. Not familiar with Google Drawings? Watch an archived OK2Ask session to learn how to use: OK2Ask Google Drawings, here.. This site would also be a great resource to use as inspiration for STEM projects. Have students choose an instrument to learn more about the engineering behind the instrument and how different materials and design affect sound quality.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Chrome Music Lab - Google
Grades
K to 12tag(s): music theory (43), rhythm (19), sound (69), sounds (44)
In the Classroom
Share Chrome Music Lab on your interactive whiteboard (or projector), and turn up your speakers. Use these activities to practice rhythm, rests, and more in music class or to illustrate basics about sound in a science class. Share a link on classroom computers for students to experiment with different music concepts (with headphones, of course!). Have students choose different interactives to explore then share with class members. Use a tool such as Screencast-o-matic, reviewed here, to record student work and share with others.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Jamzone - Music Will
Grades
K to 12tag(s): makerspace (42), music theory (43), musical instruments (42), musical notation (34)
In the Classroom
Be sure to check out the Teacher Zone and its free lesson plans and resources. This site is perfect for differentiation in the music classroom. Allow students to choose an instrument and learn at their own pace and level. Share a link on your classroom website for students to practice at home. Take advantage of the vocal lessons to learn about songwriting. After watching videos, have students write a song to summarize a novel, share information on climate change, or sing about an event in history.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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LyricsTraining - LyricsTraining.com
Grades
4 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): DAT device agnostic tool (135), french (72), german (47), italian (27), japanese (47), portuguese (22), spanish (103)
In the Classroom
Ways to use this site are limited only by your imagination! Share with ENL/ESL learners for practice in English. The many choices on this site assure that all viewers will find music to enjoy. Foreign language learners will love practicing their new language using options on the site. Be sure to share a link on your class website and school computers for practice at home and during independent work time. Use this site as a 5-minute transition at the beginning or end of class. Register on the site and create customized exercises to meet the needs of your students, or let them create practice activities for fellow class members.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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TypeDrummer - Kyle Stetz
Grades
K to 12tag(s): back to school (63), musical instruments (42), rhythm (19), sound (69)
In the Classroom
Catch your students' attention and type a short message to students on TypeDrummer to read as they enter the class. Create and share TypeDrummer messages on your class web page - suggestions might be reminders of due dates of upcoming tests, tips on completing homework assignments, or the daily school lunch menu. Allow students to create a TypeDrummer message as part of a presentation including the title and a summary of the presentation content. Create a list of instructions to share with students. Use TypeDrummer as part of your Back to School activities, have each student type their name and a sentence about themselves. Spice up lessons and have students type their answers using TypeDrummer.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Justin Guitar - Justn Guitar
Grades
4 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): multiple intelligences (8), music theory (43), musical instruments (42), musical notation (34)
In the Classroom
Spark students' interest in guitar playing by encouraging free online guitar lessons. Offer as a challenge to gifted students, and have them teach other students. Highlight students multiple intelligences and let them shine! Make up a tune to go along with a multimedia presentation. Then, show students how to embed media transforming their work by uploading it to a digital storytelling using Presentious, reviewed here, or a digital story using a video tool like Binumi, reviewed here, and then you have no worries with copyright. Tune up after school clubs with a little music. Make your music class come alive with guitars and free lessons. Share a link to this site on your class website for parents to use at home.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Learn to Play the Piano - Hoffman Academy
Grades
2 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): music theory (43), musical instruments (42), musical notation (34)
In the Classroom
If you don't have access to a piano, don't worry, you can still learn how to play! Take advantage of the online virtual piano, reviewed here, to practice just like you would on a real piano. Share with your school's music teacher as an excellent resource for teaching students notes and piano keys. The self-paced videos offer a great opportunity to differentiate for different ability levels while achieving success for all. Share a link to this site on your class website for parents to use at home.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Drumeo - Musora Media, Inc.
Grades
1 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): multiple intelligences (8), music theory (43), musical instruments (42), musical notation (34)
In the Classroom
Capture students' interest using Drumeo. Pull in your reluctant learners while emphasizing concentration, math concepts in sheet music, and building confidence. Offer as an after school option that will grab your students' interest. Highlight multiple intelligences and make all of your students shine. When your students create a multimedia project and need to add sound without violating copyrights, create your own! Use this site as an example of real world math in practice!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Violin Online - RK Deverich
Grades
1 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): gifted (62), music theory (43), musical instruments (42), musical notation (34)
In the Classroom
Try something new and learn to play the violin. Offer as a way to challenge gifted students and highlight the multiple intelligence of music. Need to have sound for screencasts, digital storytelling, or videos without copyright problems? Have students learn to play the violin. After-school ensembles have a great variety of lessons and free music. Offer to parents as a way to enrich their student's learning. Investigate before you take a field trip to the orchestra, and help student's gain a better understanding and appreciation. Music class comes alive with violins and music theory! Use as a way to add to Odyssey of the Mind or Destination Imagination tournaments.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Virtual Pan Flute
Grades
1 to 8tag(s): music theory (43), musical instruments (42)
In the Classroom
Let your composers go on the pan flute. Teach (and practice) rhythm using this tool. Create a melody for your story and create a mood. Use the pan flute to improve your students' short-term memory. Combine with vocabulary or spelling words to create rhythms to aid memorization. Use the pipe to make a melody for each character in a story. Add a melody to a text to create excitement and suspense. Have your students create different melodies to represent themselves and write to explain.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Virtual Musical Instruments - Virtual Musical Instruments
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): makerspace (42), music theory (43), musical instruments (42)
In the Classroom
Virtual Musical Instruments opens up the world of music into many other subjects. In music class, discover the different instruments, sounds, and rhythms the virtual instruments can produce. Allow your students to make their own compositions. Challenge them to determine a way to give the directions for their composition to another person so that they can repeat the original piece. In language arts class, discuss mood in literature. Determine the instruments used, the rhythms, and sounds needed to make that effect. During Readers' Theater, add a musical score for more excitement and engagement with further analysis of the text. Have students create a musical composition that tells a story. Now, play that musical story for the class, and turn it into a writing prompt. Use musical sounds and beats to illustrate the concepts of literature and the use of plot. Determine a melody for each character. Write to explain why each character has that musical composition. Math class brings the study of fractions with types of notes: whole note, half note, quarter note, and eighth notes. Let students create a musical sentence that represents them and write to explain why. Use whatever recording option is most practical in your classroom.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Incredibox - So Far So Good
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): musical instruments (42), rhythm (19)
In the Classroom
Use Incredibox as a great warm-up activity for a choir, band, or any sort of music appreciation class. As part of music class lessons, discuss the different elements in compositions. Use in any class as background music for podcasts, movies, PowerPoints, or blogs. Highlight and honor the musical geniuses in your classroom with this easy tool. Allow your learning support students instant success while challenging gifted students to create the perfect piece. Use in writing class to create mood. Play a composition as background while reading poetry or doing artwork. Help students memorize mnemonics by accompanying them with an audio track a la rap. Use music tracks as a writing prompt and enjoy the fun.Edge Features:
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes Interaction w general public/ public galleries with unmoderated content
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Products can be shared by URL
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Music Theory for Musicians and Normal People - Toby Rush
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): music theory (43), musical notation (34), rhythm (19)
In the Classroom
Print individual PDF files to use in the classroom as student handouts or enlarge to use as posters. Create a link to files on your class website or blog for student use at home. Share different files with groups of students to use to become experts and then teach the class that component. Use these PDFs for students learning to play an instrument.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Virtual Piano - Crystal Magic Studio Ltd
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): music theory (43), musical instruments (42), musical notation (34)
In the Classroom
Music teachers and students alike will delight in this site! Share this site on your projector or interactive whiteboard. Use this site to help students learn and practice piano and learn the keys. You don't even need to spend a dime to have a piano in your classroom. Use this tool in science class during units on sound to test different pitches and their frequencies.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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