How to Make Music Without Instruments (my playbook)
Learning how to make music without instruments is super fun. It’s creative play and an awesome way to expand your musical chops and artistic expression.
Plus, it’s pretty common (especially for modern songwriting).
From John Cage’s song ‘4’33’ to Bröderna Norberg - Daniel och Emil covering ‘Bad Guy’ by Billie Eilish using only grass, what can actually make music is pretty flexible.
And as for modern music production, all we technically need is a laptop.
So this post shares my favorite ways I like to make music without any of the traditional stuff.
Let’s get to it.
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So, What Is An Instrument?
An instrument is any resource or tool used (or manipulated) to make music.
So, everything from your voice to screeching notes from a train passing by could be used to make music.
In my view, anything can be an instrument.
So cars, city noises, coffee makers and layered vocal harmonies are all examples of instruments. How and where you use them is where the magic is.
But before getting into all that, let’s look at some of the benefits of making music without instruments.
The Benefits of Not Using Instruments
Making music without any instruments is a creative challenge that gives you some pretty cool benefits.
Here are a few epic perks I’ve definitely felt.
Sound different and stand out
Become a more flexible songwriter
Boost your accessibility (write music anywhere)
Discover new sounds and be more innovative
Force yourself to think differently and boost your creativity
Be a stronger, more versatile musician
Tools I Use to Write Music Without Instruments
Here’s a quick list of the things I use to make music without instruments.
(it’s mostly a basic music production setup)
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My phone + BandLab
Great for recording and storing ideas on the fly
You can also produce simple songs with just the BandLab app
MacBook Pro (M1 chip)
Aim for at least an i7 processor for Intel/Windows (but I love my MacBook Pro)
A DAW (digital audio workspace)
I use Logic Pro, but there are lots of options (more on this below)
Sound libraries + samples
Keep reading below for specific tools I love!
A creative mindset
Mindset and self belief is everything, especially for unfamiliar songwriting techniques
A good pair of headphones
I love my Audio-Technica studio headphones (but you can start simple too)
This will connect your mic (or instruments) to your computer
It converts analog signals into digital sounds (i.e., data the computer can “hear”)
A microphone
Condenser mic → great for softer sounds, in-studio nuances and singing
Dynamic mic → great for louder sounds, like live performances
Recommended: My Music Production Starter Kit
How I Make Music Without Instruments (8 moves)
Alright, onto the good stuff. Let’s look at my favorite ways to make music without instruments.
For most of these tips, you’ll need a DAW (like Logic Pro).
1. Use Your Phone
The perfect place to start making music without instruments (or any other expensive gear) is to just use your phone.
To start, two apps come to mind:
I’ve been using BandLab for years and it’s a powerful app for putting together songs and organizing all of your ideas.
As for Demo, this is a new app I recently stumbled across. It’s a great place to jot down ideas quickly and put together the shell of a song (without touching any instruments or MIDI).
BandLab also has a music production interface with a digital drum pad, sound libraries and various tools for recording straight into your phone. They even have an AI tool, SongStarter, to generate royalty-free ideas.
Plus, you can share your stuff publicly with BandLab, earn royalties and build a following through the app — it’s pretty social.
So if you’re starting out and just want to dabble (basically for free), try using a phone app.
When you’re ready to take things up a notch, then you can move things over to your computer.
2. Use Your Computer + A DAW
Most of the tips below will require using a music production software and your laptop. But this is the best way to make music without instruments (in my opinion).
First, you need a computer that has enough power to produce music. I use a MacBook. Then, you’ll need a DAW (digital audio workspace) to actually create your music with.
As mentioned above, I use Logic Pro as my preferred DAW, but there are plenty of other options.
Here are a few other popular DAWs worth exploring:
GarageBand (stripped down version of Logic Pro, but only for MacBook)
Reaper
Cubase
Ableton
Cakewalk by BandLab
Once you have your DAW downloaded, spend some time learning how to use it. You can find cheap classes on places like Udemy or just use YouTube.
Just remember to stay patient and don’t try to learn advanced skills before you’re ready. Start small and take baby steps. You can read my post on skill levels to learn more.
Charles Cleyn has great tutorials for learning Logic Pro.
3. Use Samples, Sound Libraries + Chord Software
We have so many amazing tools at our disposal. You don’t even need to know how to play instruments anymore.
And this isn’t cheating. It’s just modern producing and different ways to express your creativity.
For example, you can apply different sound libraries to transform your melodies and notes, drag and drop in a chord structure (using Captain Chords) and throw in some samples to fill things out or make your song more dynamic.
Choosing the right sounds comes down to personal preferences, testing and understanding sound design. You can chop things up, choose memorable effects and layer stuff to create unique ideas.
Modern tools offer endless new ways to make amazing and professional songs (without ever touching an instrument).
Here are some awesome sample, sound and software tools I’m currently loving:
Arcade by Output (the “ultimate sampler and instrument plugin”)
LANDR (AI mastering, awesome plugins, distribution for releases, samples, premium courses and more)
Native Instruments (huge library of sounds, loops, instruments and tools)
Caption Chords by Mixed In Key (write epic chord progressions like a pro)
Unison (lots of presets, plugins and sample packs to choose from)
Make Pop Music’s samples and loops
SampleRadar (just a library of free samples and loops)
Recommended: How to Make Your Music More Dynamic
4. Use AI
AI is here to stay. So I say, let’s use it.
Regardless of how you feel about using AI in the music-making process, it’s the perfect solution to songwriting without instruments.
We can use prompts, samples and more to create any sound we want. But AI can be used well beyond the songwriting stage.
For example, I’ve been using Landr’s mastering AI to fine tune all of my SoundCloud demos.
Admittedly, I haven’t played around with too many of the AI tools for making music yet. But I know there are tons constantly coming out.
Here are a few examples of songwriting AI tools currently on my radar:
Output’s Pack Generator (the first free feature from their AI tool, Co-Producer)
MusicLM by Google
So my best advice is to do some research on your end and test the different tools out there.
5. Use Your Voice
As you know, your voice is an instrument.
I love layering vocals for harmonies or using my voice to make drums (beatbox style).
It’ll help to understand some music theory, but you can also just play around until you find what sounds good.
There’s a reason harmonies sound so beautiful. Our voice is an epic instrument — so I say, let’s use it.
Beyond harmonies, we can use our voice in other ways too. Jon Bellion (one of my musical influences) does this amazingly. You can check out the video essay below to learn more about his process.
But essentially, you can add effects and filters to any vocal recording or noise and manipulate it to sound like anything (a guitar, drum, random instrument…you name it).
Our voice is powerful on its own. But coupled with your DAW, a few plugins and a creative vision? It’s unstoppable.
Recommended: Jon Bellion + Using Voice As An Instrument
6. Use Clever Apps
There are enough apps and new tech to keep us busy for at least one lifetime.
But I’d like to highlight two that are currently on my radar. They are:
Vochlea’s Dubler converts your voice into drums or instruments. This puts intuitive songwriting front and center. It works like this:
After assigning different sounds of your voice to a specific sound or drum piece, you just hum or beatbox into a microphone (using only your voice) and Vochlea will automatically convert it into MIDI.
Pretty epic, right? I think so.
But the fun doesn’t stop there. Life by XLN Audio is another epic app that recently caught my attention.
It takes any sound or audio clip and chops it up into a unique beat, which you can then sample or further finesse for your music project.
This app gives you various customization options and connects directly from your phone into your DAW.
Suffice to say, I’m sufficiently stoked on this app too.
7. Use Sounds From the Environment
Let’s move things out of the studio. Get some fresh air.
We have so many sounds and musical nuances around us. From cars driving by to leaves rustling in the wind, turning our world into music may be an overlooked option.
For example, I like to sometimes use sounds from my travels in my music. Trains, people talking, general city life, planes taking off – these are all fair game for songwriting.
So go out and explore your environment (inside or outside). Pay attention to the sounds. Look for unique or interesting ones. You can always adjust the pitch and add other effects to make things pop.
Hot Tip: You can get rid of background noise using a noise gate plugin (but the cleaner the original recording is, the better).
8. Use Objects + Everyday Items
Besides recording the environment around us, we can also manipulate and create our own sounds using everyday objects and things around us.
And almost anything can be turned into music.
For example, here are some everyday things that could turned into sounds, beats and loops:
Rubbing things together
Using pots and pans
Shaking a match box
Scratching a couch
Crushing a can
Using a sink faucet to create a cool water effect
Once you capture the sounds, you’ll want to edit them by adding effects and other production techniques.
The only limit to what’s considered an instrument or not is your imagination.
Making Music Without Instruments (4 tips)
I spend a lot of time traveling and oftentimes, all I have is my laptop and an idea in my head.
So these are some key tips and advice that have made making music (when I have no access to instruments) way easier (and way more fun).
Get Comfortable In Your DAW
This is first on the list, because it will make everything so much easier.
In fact, if we skip this part, then there’s a good chance that making music with our laptops will just turn into a frustrating and stressful situation (trust me, I’ve been there).
A lot of the solutions for writing music without instruments rely on our technical agility with music production software.
This is where we can tweak our sounds, create nuances, layer noises and bring out the full potential of our ideas.
That’s not to say that everything will sound “bad” when first get started.
But knowing how to arrange your song, cut tracks, add effects, adjust EQ, layer things and throw on plugins or reverbs will make things more fun.
Just don’t let this scare you if you’re new to music production. Stay patient, have fun and learn from just a few steps ahead of your current skills.
Try Different Things + Expect “Bad” Days
Don’t get discouraged if one of the ideas isn’t working. And don’t think that this post is the end-all, be-all list of ways to make music without instruments.
There are countless ways to make music. And what works for me, may not work for you.
Similarly, not everyday will be a W. Some days, I’m in a complete flow state, but other days just suck.
That’s the importance of trying different things. We can get out of ruts and find what best works for us through trial and error.
Of course, finding the balance of knowing when to pivot and when to double down is a discussion for another day.
But, in the beginning, just have fun and try out many different methods – see what you like most and what puts you in a flow state best.
And remember, don’t get discouraged when things get hard — stay the course and be a student.
Hone Your Creative Mindset
Writing music is one of the most advanced forms of creativity. And writing music without instruments?
Well this requires even more creative thinking and outside-the-box solutions.
So it’s about seeing and hearing the world in different ways. It’s about being conscious of our surroundings, from a musician’s perspective.
For example, taking a moment to notice the way the door sounds when it opens. Or how an old light flickers a buzzing note when it’s turned on.
I believe this is what John Cage (from the intro) was trying to express in his song ‘4’33’.
So stay consciously creative. Music is everywhere — you just need to capture it.
Recommended: How to Have A Creative Mindset
Don’t Forget About the Songwriting
When we’re focused so intently on finding solutions to making music without instruments, we can forget the other important part of songwriting: the melodies and the song itself.
So don’t ignore your creative, songwriting voice.
Don’t worry about sound design early on. It’s more important (in my view) to get the ideas out of your head. You can always go back and change sounds later.
So even if that means just recording your idea into the Voice Memos app on your phone, songwriting is more about melody, emotion and story than instrument choice.
Again, that’s just my take on things. I’m a melody-first kind of songwriter though, so I could just be biased.
Conclusion
Learning to make music without instruments is one part fun and one part creative challenge.
But it’s also a new skill, so don’t expect immediate magic. As long as you don’t quit, songwriting without instruments will quickly become your new creative skill.
So keep at it. And most importantly, remember to have fun!
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