Acoustic music comprises music that solely or primarily uses instruments which produce sound through entirely acoustic means, as opposed to electric or electronic means. The retronym "acoustic music" appeared after the advent of electric instruments, such as the electric guitar, bass guitar, electric organ and synthesizer.Safire, William, "On Language: Retronym", New York Times Magazine, January 7, 2007

Performers of acoustic music often increase the volume of their output using electronic amplifiers. However, these amplification devices remain separate from the amplified instrument and reproduce its natural sound accurately.

Following the increasing popularity of the television show MTV Unplugged during the 1990s, acoustic (though in most cases still electrically-amplified) performances by musical artists who usually rely on electronic instruments became colloquially referred to as "unplugged" performances.