This paper describes an investigation by the Collections Conservation and Care section of the Horniman Museum into the metallurgy of a group of traditional, but largely contemporary, musical instruments from India. The musical instruments come from the Punjab, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Orissa and Kerala and were collected with additional information on makers, construction materials and methods and playing techniques in the form of questionnaires and samples. The compositions of the copper alloy elements of the instruments were examined non-destructively by using energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (EDXRF). The results of the analyses showed that the copper alloys were both bronze and brass with evidence also of recycled metal. The analysis results were sometimes found to be inconsistent with the information provided in the questionnaires and this should prompt improvements in the way in which information on materials can be collected in future fieldwork projects.