It's hard to remember what music was like before the advent of modern electronic musical instruments. Although music was perhaps more 'pure', it was restricted to the natural sounds produced by the physical attributes of the instrument. Electric guitars, electronic pianos and keyboards, and the synthesizer are all part of a musical revolution that began when electronic music emerged on the scene.

Unlike acoustic instruments, electronic instruments are known to produce a variety of sounds through the use of electronics. Electronic music is produced in part by audio signal processing applications used to create sound effects and other musical sounds. It allows composers and music entertainers to simulate another instrument, or sample the sounds of nature, traffic, or other songs to enhance a musical work and give it more dimension.

Historically, one of the first musical instruments that employed electricity was invented by Vaclav Prokop Divis between 1730 and 1753 (of the Czech Republic). The Denis d’or’s iron strings were charged with electricity to enhance sound quality. To add to the novelty of this innovative and unique electronic musical instrument, Divis added a sadistic contraption that allowed him to give the player an electrical shock whenever Divis desired to amuse himself. Thankfully, none of today's electronic instruments have such a device!

An influential foundation for electronic musical instruments is the STEIM foundation in the Netherlands. Their research has led to the concepts and development of many innovative electronic musical instruments to date.

Common electronic musical instruments include synthesizers, which generate artificial sound. These electronic musical instruments are cleverly designed to use additive, FM, phase distortion, physical modeling synthesis, and subtractive techniques.

Generally, these electronic musical instruments include a keyboard for human interface to create various musical expressions. Overall, midis, sound effects, computer music, and other musical compositions can be uniquely created. Today's music composers are able to enjoy the flexibility and convenience of electric instruments to create new musical works and arrangements with ease.

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