From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Free-reed instruments are musical instruments that produce sounds from a reed vibrating in a chamber, as opposed to "fixed reed" instruments, which use a vibrating reed "fixed" to (or vibrating against) some other part of the instrument.
The oldest known free-reed is the Chinese sheng, widely accepted as the musical ancestor of the harmonica and accordion. Other well-known free-reeds include the concertina, bandoneon, melodica, and reed organ.
