All 19 instruments offered, one card each. Learn the four families, then compare weight, cost, loudness, and how hard each one is to start.
Start here: the four families
Every instrument in the band belongs to one of four groups, and the group tells you most of what you need to know — how the sound gets made, what the hard part will be, and what it costs to keep running. Read these first, then browse the cards below.
All 19 instruments
Sweep your mouse across a card's picture to flip through more photos of it. Click a card for the full profile, a video, and a sound clip.
Click a column heading to sort. Click a row to open the full profile with photo and video.
Instrument
Family
Range (sounding)
Size
Weight
Start difficulty
Loudness
Portability
Rent / month
What this actually costs
Most families rent for the first year or two through a school-affiliated music dealer. Rent-to-own plans usually apply payments toward purchase. These are typical U.S. ranges as of 2026 and vary a lot by region and dealer.
$22–$35
Flute, clarinet, trumpet, cornet, trombone — the standard starters
French horn, baritone horn, bass clarinet, mellophone
$50–$150
Tuba, baritone sax — often school-owned instead
Budget beyond the rental: reeds ($15–30/mo for woodwinds), valve oil or slide grease ($5–10 a few times a year), a method book ($12–20), a music stand ($20), and yearly maintenance ($60–120). Woodwinds are the ongoing-supply instruments; brass are the cheapest to keep running.
Noise, and where the practicing happens
Every instrument can be practiced in an apartment — some just make it easier. Roughly 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week, is a normal middle-school expectation.
Quietest: cello, electric bass (headphones through an amp — effectively silent), flute in a closed room.
Loudest: trumpet, trombone, alto sax, tuba, percussion. Practice mutes exist for brass ($25–60) and cut volume substantially.
Percussion tip: students practice on a rubber pad and a bell kit far more than on a real drum. Quieter than parents expect.
Space and hauling it around
Fits in a backpack: flute, piccolo, clarinet, trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn.
A second bag to carry: alto sax, trombone, French horn, mellophone, bell kit.
Needs a car and a corner of a room: bass clarinet, tenor sax, baritone horn, cello, electric/upright bass.
Almost always stays at school: tuba, baritone sax. Ask whether the school has a second instrument for home — this is common and worth asking before choosing.
Questions worth asking the band director
Which sections are short on players this year? (Filling a gap means more playing time and often a school-owned instrument.)
Does the school provide the large instruments, and is there a home instrument too?
Is there a rental night with a preferred dealer, and does it include a repair/damage plan?
Will this choice still work in marching band, jazz band, or orchestra later?
Photos come from Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons and video demos from YouTube — an internet connection is needed for both. Ranges are approximate and vary with player skill and instrument model.