Music boxes for playing melodies includes: a plurality of star wheels rotatably supported on a first shaft and having a plurality of protruding parts protruding radially outward; a drive gear for driving the plurality of star wheels; a vibration plate disposed along the first shaft that has a plurality of vibration valves corresponding to the plurality of star wheels; and a solenoid for each star wheel.
The solenoid is driven to control the rotation of the corresponding star wheel. By controlling the rotation of the star wheels with solenoids, the protruding parts can be selectively made to contact and pluck the corresponding vibration valves at a prescribed timing. Accordingly, the conventional music box device can play arbitrary musical pieces, without having to replace a rotating member, such as a cylinder or disc.