If you have access to a royalty free music library, or you are searching through an online music library, you may find the task difficult when it comes to choosing the right royalty free music track for your project. It is important to have an insight into how different music tracks affect different kinds of visual projects. This article takes a close look at the process of choosing a royalty free music track for a short stop-motion piece.
Is Music that Important?
If a project has the intention of eliciting feelings or actions from viewers then music is not only important, it is integral. Music has the powerful function of changing the impact and ingestion of a visual project completely. Understanding how different styles of music and music compositions affect audiences is a field in itself and often a task given to music composers and music directors.
In many cases a project may not have the luxury of a musical director or contracted music composer. It may be left to the editor to simply experiment with different tracks, placed together with the visuals, until the desired effect has been met. This is a technique composers often use to establish the most suitable musical styles and compositional technique for various kinds of visual productions. Before looking more closely at editing experimentation, it may be faster to simply consult a composer.
Consult a Composer
So you have come across a high-quality royalty free music library with hundreds or even thousands of music tracks and you have no idea where to begin in your search. Of course you do not have hours of time available to listen through the samples and the search options may not be working for you either.
Consulting the composer of the royalty free music library may reap much faster and more tailored results. By explaining your project and desired outcomes a composer can find an appropriate track quickly and accurately. To make your communication easier you should consider the following points;
- Outline the specifics of your project; “We are working on a two-minute promotional video for a financial company. The first thirty-seconds is a fast sequence of city buildings. The next minute is slower paced pans of office interiors ending with thirty-seconds of statistical graphs and animations. The whole two-minutes has a voice-over.”
- Outline the audience of your project; this can help to make music genre choices. By understanding the audience, more appropriate music styles can be chosen.
- State the desired outcome of the project; “We want to inspire the viewer and motivate them into contacting us.”
- Reference other music tracks; where possible it can be helpful to a composer to reference other music compositions.
- Speak with language that easily bridges fields of expertise; replace abstract art terms with simple emotional descriptions.
You may also benefit from asking a composer to tailor a royalty free music track for your project. The cost may be much lower than a custom composed track, especially if you choose a track from an existing music library and ask the composer of the library to alter the track to suit your individual project needs.
Experiment with Music Editing
A production company will either have a large collection of royalty free music or will need to go in search of new libraries. Both scenarios are completely different for editors. Full access to a music library is by far the most ideal situation allowing the editor to experiment by placing different tracks together with the visuals and seeing which works better. However, listening to online samples from a music library may be limited to short samples, interfering library voice-overs and timing issues.
The benefit of experimenting with different music tracks is that directors and editors can experience the varying effects the music can produce. The downside of course is that it is time-consuming and projects may be pressed for time. If time is tight, then at least experiment with two or three different tracks to see how the rhythm of the music plays with the cuts of the edit.
Choosing Music for a Stop Motion Piece
As an example, and to illustrate how royalty free music can work with different kinds of visual projects, here is a stop motion piece supported by a track from the Spencer Sternberg royalty free music library. The music track is titled ‘Conducting Experiments’ and comes from the documentary album ‘Fossil Hunters‘.
The stop motion is a fast paced construction sequence and on first glances an editor would most likely consider a fast paced music track to be an appropriate support. However, after experimenting with some of the music tracks from ‘Fossil Hunters‘, it became apparent that a more effective mood was created by having a contrasting music track. ‘Conducting Experiments‘ contains ‘light piano and xylophone with rich synthesized swells’, with each instrument connecting with the visuals in different ways. The xylophone’s rhythm and melody support the motion of the construction workers, while the synthesizer swells support the subtle shadow movement of the sun. The piano adds melodic interest and also subtle rhythmic syncing with the end titles.
Final Thoughts
Choosing the right royalty free music for a visual project is a difficult and time consuming task. From the point of view of a director or editor, experimentation is often an effective way to find the most suitable royalty free music track. If time permits however, a project can benefit greatly from consulting a composer. A music composer can offer valuable knowledge and insight to a production team, even if it is only to advise which music track from a royalty free music library is most appropriate.
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Tags: listen, royalty free music