Comparison

Instruments Free vs Real Lyra

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Instruments Free

Explore a vibrant sound picture book with a collection of musical instruments. Tap images to hear their authentic sounds and see their names spoken in one of 78 languages. Ideal for early learning and language development.

Highlights
  • Interactive sound picture book
  • Real instrument sounds
  • Spoken instrument names
  • Supports 78 languages
  • Adjustable slideshow mode
  • Offline functionality
  • Parental gate
Features
Read full description

Instruments is the best interactive sound picture book featuring a lot of musical instruments: tap the image to hear the instrument and see its name in your chosen language (78 languages). Large images, real sounds, spoken names. Who is it for? Ages 1–5 for the picture-book experience. Ages 3–15 for language learning and instrument vocabulary. How it works The interface lets a child, alone or with an adult, discover each instrument and its sound. Images can advance automatically like a slideshow (adjustable speed) or manually by swiping the screen. The display order is configurable (random or sequential). A long-press on the instrument name lets you choose another display/spoken language. Multilingual (78 languages) Spoken names and interface available in your language of choice, to build vocabulary and train the ear from an early age. Tip: in your device settings, download Apple’s premium voices (higher-quality voices provided by iOS). Why you’ll love Instruments? Clear, reassuring musical discovery for young children. Natural pronunciations and authentic sounds. Multilingual (78) to support early learning, vocabulary, and listening. Works anywhere Works offline and in airplane mode: all images and sounds are stored on device No connection required. Orientation Portrait and landscape on iPhone and iPad. Parents and schools – Parental gate (settings protected by a random math question). Supported languages (displayed and spoken) Afrikaans, Albanian, German, Amharic, English, Arabic, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Basque, Bengali, Belarusian, Burmese, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Korean, Croatian, Danish, Spanish, Estonian, Filipino/Tagalog, Finnish, French, Galician, Welsh, Georgian, Greek, Gujarati, Hausa, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Irish, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Kannada, Kazakh, Khmer, Lao, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malay, Malayalam, Maltese, Marathi, Dutch, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, Uzbek, Persian/Farsi, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Serbian (Cyrillic), Serbian (Latin), Sinhala, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish, Swahili, Tamil, Czech, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Yoruba, Zulu Contact us contact@iburgerapps.com

About

Real Lyra

This app simulates a marching glockenspiel, allowing users to learn notes, play along with music, and record their own melodies. It offers realistic sound, customization options, and a library of tutorial songs.

Highlights
  • Realistic sound sampling
  • Customizable instrument designs
  • Multiple note labeling systems
  • Pitch transposition
  • MP3 playback for jamming
  • Recording and sharing capabilities
  • Community tutorial library
Features
Read full description

Real Lyra turns your phone into a realistic marching bell lyre (glockenspiel) — the instrument marching bands carry on the field. Learn notes, play along with your band's repertoire, and record your own melodies, all from your pocket. REALISTIC SOUND Every note is sampled from a real belira, so playing feels and sounds like the instrument itself — not a synthesized approximation. MAKE IT YOURS Choose from 25 belira motif designs and 25 mallet skins to customize the look of your instrument. LEARN YOUR WAY Switch note labels between numbers (1 2 3…), solfège (Do Re Mi), or letters (C D E…) to match how you were taught to read music. PLAY IN ANY KEY Transpose the pitch from −6 to +6 semitones to match your band's key or your own vocal range. JAM ALONG Load your own MP3s into the local music player and play along — perfect for practicing a specific song at your own pace. RECORD, SAVE & SHARE Record your performances, save them as melodies, export them, and share your recordings with bandmates. TUTORIAL LIBRARY Browse a community library of marching band tutorial songs, or submit your own recording to be featured for other players. Whether you're a marching band member practicing between rehearsals, a music student learning notation, or just someone who loves the sound of a glockenspiel, Real Lyra puts a full practice rig in your pocket.

Screenshots

Instruments Free4 screens
Real Lyra4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Real Lyra at 4.0 against Instruments Free's 1.0. Real Lyra also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 19 months) and ratings volume (11 vs 1). Instruments Free's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). On price, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Real Lyra holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Real Lyra has 11 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Instruments Free ships an update every 19 months, Real Lyra every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Instruments Free versus Real Lyra: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterInstruments FreeReal Lyra
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings)4.0 (11 ratings) — better
Positive reviews52.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings111 — better
Update frequencyEvery 19 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterAd-supported
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size30 MB62 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChristophe Burdinasywalul fikri

Customer experience

Instruments Free

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews38 reviews
Positive52.6%
Neutral7.9%
Negative39.5%

Real Lyra

All ratings11 ratings
Positive63.6%
Neutral9.1%
Negative27.3%

In-app purchases

None

Instruments Free

No in-app purchases

None

Real Lyra

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Instruments Free free?
Instruments Free is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Real Lyra free?
Real Lyra is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Instruments Free or Real Lyra?
Real Lyra is rated higher. Instruments Free averages 1.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while Real Lyra averages 4.0 from 11 ratings.
Do Instruments Free or Real Lyra have ads?
Real Lyra shows ads; Instruments Free does not.
Which is updated more often, Instruments Free or Real Lyra?
Instruments Free ships an update every 19 months, and Real Lyra every 4 days. Most recently, Instruments Free was updated on October 13, 2026 and Real Lyra on October 5, 2026.

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