A musical instrument held and played by hand such as a kalimba having a hollow sound chamber and an angled footing mounting on an outer surface of the sound chamber. A plurality of interchangeable one piece key plate mounted to the angled footing each key plate including a plurality of keys, each key having a length corresponding to a permanent preset musical tone or note. Each interchangeable key plate can have a set of musical sounds different from other key plates such that a musician can change key plates to change the style of music played, or to suit the desired educational environment.