Instrument++
Instrument++ extends the note block with more musical instruments, including several traditional Chinese ones, for players who want a wider palette of sounds.
What it does
Vanilla note blocks offer only sixteen instruments, which makes complex songs hard to play. Instrument++ adds further instruments and pitch notation blocks, and each new instrument is chosen by the block placed directly beneath the note block. The added instruments include the French horn and electric guitar tones, plus instruments drawn from traditional Chinese music.
Several block families are added as triggers for the new sounds, among them basalt, blackstone, chain iron bars, snow, coral, copper and moss. The mod is published for Fabric and Forge across eight release versions, 1.18.2 – 1.20.1, and runs on client and server, so both the server and every player need it. It is open source under the MIT License.
Key features
Instruments by block below
The instrument a note block plays is set by the block placed under it, so no extra interface is needed to change sounds.
Pitch notation blocks
Pitch blocks placed beneath a note block set the pitch, letting players play higher or lower notes on the same instrument.
Traditional Chinese instruments
A set of added instruments draws on traditional Chinese music, adding tones not found in the vanilla sixteen.
Decorative trigger blocks
Basalt, blackstone, snow, coral, copper and moss blocks each trigger a different instrument, so builds can use them as sound sources.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Use cases
Performing songs
Players who compose songs can use the added instruments and pitches to build arrangements that vanilla sounds cannot cover.
Music rooms in builds
Players who build concert halls or music rooms can mix the new instruments with decorative blocks chosen for the look of the space.
Who it’s for: Players who build with note blocks and want a wider range of instruments, and server owners who want to offer that range to their players.
How it compares
Note Block Charged is open source under the GNU General Public License v3.0 or later, built for Fabric and covering 1.20 – 1.21.1 with client and server installs. Noteblock Backport is open source under the GNU General Public License v3.0 only, targets Forge for 1.12.2 and runs on client and server. Instrument++ covers 1.18.2 – 1.20.1 on both loaders and is open source under the MIT License.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instrument++ | Fabric and Forge | 1.18.2 – 1.20.1 | Client and server | 2023-08-10 |
| Note Block Charged | Fabric | 1.20 – 1.21.1 | Client and server | 2024-08-16 |
| Noteblock Backport | Forge | 1.12.2 | Client and server | 2024-11-24 |
Questions
Which loaders does Instrument++ support?
Does the server need Instrument++ installed?
How is an instrument chosen for a note block?
In the catalog
Instrument++ is one of 29,952 Game mechanics mods on ModsFinder, and one of 19,630 Game mechanics mods for Fabric. 34,764 mods support Minecraft 1.20.1.
More from Viola-Siemens
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What the author says
As we all know, note block plays variant musical instruments, which only depends on the block below itself. But it sometimes makes us disappointed that vanilla provides only 16 kinds of musical instruments, so that we find it hard to perform a song with many instruments well. Why don't you try this out? Instrument++…
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/instrument-plus-plus
- Owner
- Viola-Siemens
- Published
- 2023-02-22
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2023-08-10
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15