The names of the instruments indicate what sort of sound will be heard when that instrument number (MIDI Program Change or “PC#”) is selected on the GM synthesizer.
These sounds are the same for all MIDI channels except channel 10, which has only percussion sounds and some sound effects.
The General MIDI instrument sounds are grouped by families. In each family are 8 specific instruments.
| PC# | Family | PC# | Family |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-8 | Piano | 65-72 | Reed |
| 9-16 | Chromatic Percussion | 73-80 | Pipe |
| 17-24 | Organ | 81-88 | Synth Lead |
| 25-32 | Guitar | 89-96 | Synth Pad |
| 33-40 | Bass | 97-104 | Synth Effects |
| 41-48 | Strings | 105-112 | Ethnic |
| 49-56 | Ensemble | 113-120 | Percussive |
| 57-64 | Brass | 121-128 | Sound Effects |
While GM does not define the actual characteristics of any sounds, the names in parentheses after each of the synth leads, pads, and sound effects are, in particular, are intended only as guides.
| PC# | Instrument | PC# | Instrument | PC# | Instrument |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Acoustic Grand Piano | 44 | Contrabass | 87 | Lead 7 (fifths) |
| 2 | Bright Acoustic Piano | 45 | Tremolo Strings | 88 | Lead 8 (bass+lead) |
| 3 | Electric Grand Piano | 46 | Pizzicato Strings | 89 | Pad 1 (new age) |
| 4 | Honky-tonk Piano | 47 | Orchestral Harp | 90 | Pad 2 (warm) |
| 5 | Electric Piano 1 | 48 | Timpani | 91 | Pad 3 (polysynth) |
| 6 | Electric Piano 2 | 49 | String Ensemble 1 | 92 | Pad 4 (choir) |
| 7 | Harpsichord | 50 | String Ensemble 2 | 93 | Pad 5 (bowed) |
| 8 | Clavinet | 51 | Synth Strings 1 | 94 | Pad 6 (metallic) |
| 9 | Celesta | 52 | Synth Strings 2 | 95 | Pad 7 (halo) |
| 10 | Glockenspiel | 53 | Choir Aahs | 96 | Pad 8 (sweep) |
| 11 | Music Box | 54 | Voice Oohs | 97 | FX 1 (train) |
| 12 | Vibraphone | 55 | Synth Voice | 98 | FX 2 (soundtrack) |
| 13 | Marimba | 56 | Orchestra Hit | 99 | FX 3 (crystal) |
| 14 | Xylophone | 57 | Trumpet | 100 | FX 4 (atmosphere) |
| 15 | Tubular Bells | 58 | Trombone | 101 | FX 5 (brightness) |
| 16 | Dulcimer | 59 | Tuba | 102 | FX 6 (goblins) |
| 17 | Drawbar Organ | 60 | Muted Trumpet | 103 | FX 7 (echoes) |
| 18 | Percussive Organ | 61 | French Horn | 104 | FX 8 (sci-fi) |
| 19 | Rock Organ | 62 | Brass Section | 105 | Sitar |
| 20 | Church Organ | 63 | Synth Brass 1 | 106 | Banjo |
| 21 | Reed Organ | 64 | Synth Brass 2 | 107 | Shamisen |
| 22 | Accordion | 65 | Soprano Sax | 108 | Koto |
| 23 | Harmonica | 66 | Alto Sax | 109 | Kalimba |
| 24 | Tango Accordion | 67 | Tenor Sax | 110 | Bagpipe |
| 25 | Acoustic Guitar (nylon) | 68 | Baritone Sax | 111 | Fiddle |
| 26 | Acoustic Guitar (steel) | 69 | Oboe | 112 | Shanai |
| 27 | Electric Guitar (jazz) | 70 | English Horn | 113 | Tinkle Bell |
| 28 | Electric Guitar (clean) | 71 | Bassoon | 114 | Agogo |
| 29 | Electric Guitar (muted) | 72 | Clarinet | 115 | Steel Drums |
| 30 | Overdriven Guitar | 73 | Piccolo | 116 | Woodblock |
| 31 | Distortion Guitar | 74 | Flute | 117 | Tailo Drum |
| 32 | Guitar Harmonics | 75 | Recorder | 118 | Melodic Drum |
| 33 | Acoustic Bass | 76 | Pan Flute | 119 | Synth Drum |
| 34 | Electric Bass (finger) | 77 | Blown Bottle | 120 | Reverse Cymbal |
| 35 | Electric Bass (pick) | 78 | Shakuhachi | 121 | Guitar Fret Noise |
| 36 | Fretless Bass | 79 | Whistle | 122 | Breath Noise |
| 37 | Slap Bass 1 | 80 | Ocarina | 123 | Seashore |
| 38 | Slap Bass 2 | 81 | Lead 1 (square) | 124 | Bird Tweet |
| 39 | Synth Bass | 182 | Lead 2 (sawtooth) | 125 | Telephone Ring |
| 40 | Synth Bass 2 | 83 | Lead 3 (calliope) | 126 | Helicopter |
| 41 | Violin | 84 | Lead 4 (chiff) | 127 | Applause |
| 42 | Viola | 85 | Lead 5 (charang) | 128 | Gunshot |
| 43 | Cello | 86 | Lead 6 (voice) | ||