You Should Only have 4-5 Instrument tops!

Puppet

Puppet

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I've been going through my ipod, listening to r&b and hip hop tracks, and I've realized that aside from drums and the bass, there are only about 3-5 other instruments being added to the song.

If you're anything like me, you probably have spent hours adding new instruments to make it sound better, but I've noticed that the best instrumentals only use about 3-5, some of the best ones only use 1 to 2! for example: Meek Mill ft. Drake - Amen! that song only uses piano and organs, yet it's explosive and the beat is one of my favs this year!

If you really want that BIG SOUND like a big band playing... sorta like Justice League type stuff, they use about 7 instruments, but even then, they only feature 4 at a time, and for the next bar they'll take away the 3 from that initial 4 and add an ADDITIONAL 3, so really it's only 4 instruments at a time playing.

I wanna save time for anybody whose starting out, I've spent a good 3-4 years not knowing that sometimes, less is more.

Take this advice and save yourself sometime... spend time picking the RIGHT sound,but only a FEW sounds ya feel me? the less the better in my opinion !
 
I agree! Although, I wouldn't consider layering 2-3 synths as 2-3 instruments though, I'd still put it under the '1' category. But yeah, some of the tutorial videos I see are crazy. Seeing dudes use 15+ instruments from like 4-5 different VSTs. Must take fooking weeks to construct beats like that lol.

I can't even start to imagine the amount of EQ work needed to fix all the clashing frequencies.
 
usually, it just seems like theres very few instruments. Usually theres stacks of layers under what your hearing. Least thats usually the case with the stuff i listen to.
 
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Yeah to be fair sometimes you don't hear everything in the song until you've listened to it a good few times. Though i agree, a few catchy melodies playing beats 20 instruments all doing their own thing.
 
4-5 instruments is the common practice but those instruments is layered to make it thick and defined. I think about it like a string section. I guess it depends on your goal man.If it sounds good, it sound good.
 
All I will say is that analysis is a great tool for understanding production and compositional values - you have amply demonstrated its power as a high level tool in your post.....
 
I wrote a long winded post but forget it. Here's the two important things:

1) 1 or 20 instruments, make each one matter. If you've got instruments in there and you can't think of any good reason to keep them in other than well I came up with this so I should use it, right? then get rid of it. If you make sure that every instrument is serving a purpose and isn't just adding clutter, you'll probably end up with the perfect amount.

2) If you are making beats and not instrumental music, make sure you leave enough space for the vocalist. EQ in the mix won't magically unclutter some crazy beat that's so jam packed with stuff and perfect that a vocalist would actually bring the quality down.
 
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I feel like most instrumentals don't even layer that much! seriously! listen to the top 40 rap/hiphop/r&b they don't layer THAT much TBH
 
It's more on how simple the pattern/notes and chords of your instruments are then how many there should be. And most instruments are layered. Like me, I will most of the time layer my deeper brass lines with a wavy sound behind it, and then maybe string hits will hit when the note changes, and then a deep piano will hit with the brass. Right there is 4-5 instruments just for that one melody. Sure, only 3 instruments can be used, but the notes are less simplistic and don't need anything with it because then it's too much. Picture someone rapping over it and then think to yourself "Will a flow come naturally, or do I have too many sounds playing all at once?"

There should always be a fulfilling beat behind the one most important sound..vocals. If you think of it as layers, vocals should be the first one, then comes that instrument which leads him to that flow. That's why when I make my sounds for my hooks, I kinda freestyle in my head, a normal flow or even hum it. But I keep it flexible cause not everyone thinks alike. Look at Chief Keef with his flow. It is completely, I mean completely different from most other rappers. That's why he has a specific producer, Young Chop.
 
Depends on each song. There are lots of little sounds, bits n pieces here n there that you cannot hear the first time. Even though when listening to the overall product it only sounds like there was only 4-5 instruments used. In hiphop they use as little as 3 instruments or even just a drum loop and one instrument. But I agree with most of them here.. lotta stuff is layered so its hard to tell how many instruments they usually use.. I agree with you that you pick the right sound.. a sound that sells, a sound that your ear buys and a sound that never get old.. sometimes picking the sound is only half the job.. creating a melody or harmony with that sound is what matters. Anyways that was just my 2 cent from what I have experienced :)
 
Anytime you use the word "only" especially in music production, i automatically don't take the opinion seriously

If you should "only" have 4-5 instruments then the Justice League would be out of a job. They have had everything from 4 instruments (aston martin music) to full orchestra's (maybach music 1,2,3,4) on their songs. Stop trying to put rules on music and just make whats good to your ear.

If you feel the track needs only 4, use that. If you feel that the track needs to use 128 tracks (if you even got the cpu for it lol) then do that.
 
Depends on the song, never more than 4 at a time... but if you're adding lots of chops like complextro or dubstep, 20 different sounds is not uncommon.
 
It seems everyone is pretty much on the same page. It doesn't matter how many instruments, as long as each has it's rightful place and stands out in the mix. Muddying up the track with extra parts you can't hear during playback is pointless. Less is more in terms of the mixdown.
 
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The bigger the sounds the less you want (at any one time), applies to drums too - the bigger they are the less space is left for instruments/vocals
 
Fully agree! I myself was/am adding many instruments to tracks, but when i listen to songs, they are not that complicated by quantity of instruments and only have a few, below 7 instruments that are laying on top, rest of it is just manipulation ith what you have.
 
you dont even really need big sounds tbh, you just need sounds to mesh together and create a character to the music. I think thats why I like tracks like these:







They all have a character to them. Like, American Psycho literally sounds like it has a "Shady" character, even without eminem rapping on it. Musics more about feels than anything else.
 
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4-5 instruments? 1 melody, with chords playing in the background, bass and maybe and some "ear candy" instruments is all you need. Otherwise it gets WAYYY too cluttered.
 
All you really need is a melody and counter melody. But every song is different really.
 
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