In Longman's Common Mistakes in English Grammar Practice, 6th Ed. by T.J. Fitikides (2002), at #251 the author recommends using make a noise instead of make noise. The example sentences go like this:
Don't say: I told them not to make noise.
Say: I told them not to make a noise.
My questions:
As it's a negative sentence, why not use any instead of a, i.e. I told them not to make any noise(s). Is it wrong to say to a couple of noisy students in the hallway for example, Don't make any noise(s)?
I've looked up the word noise and it's both count and non-count properties In the context that I made above which one is correct or more common:
Don't make any noise.
Don't make any noises.
Don't make a noise.
Don't make noises.
Best Answer
To answer your questions (not necessarily in order), noise is generally more common than noises.
Noises connotes, to me, specific different types of noise considered together:
Here, it includes the roosters that weren't necessarily quiet until the dawn, the distant barking dogs, the insects and other night creatures.
Noise (a sound of any kind) in general can be singular or plural in kind, and when the difference between the different kinds doesn't matter, noise is often used.
In your example:
"Don't make any noise" is very common; equally valid but less common is "I told them not to make a noise." Both are a little more emphatic than "don't make noise". It is similar to "Don't make a sound" - a very emphatic imperative. It would be much less common to say noises here, though clearly it wouldn't be wrong.
Idiomatically, noise is more common in speech than noises. Unless you want to call attention to the different noises (e.g. "the noises coming from that party were really interesting"), it will sound more natural to use noise.