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;

1. 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.”
2. 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.
3. State the desired outcome of the project; “We want to inspire the viewer and motivate them into contacting us.”
4. Reference other music tracks; where possible it can be helpful to a composer to reference other music compositions.
5. 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.

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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This is where royalty free music comes in. A producer can search the internet to find a royalty free music library, an online resource where they can preview and download either individual tracks, or full albums of royalty free music. This saves precious time during post-production deadlines and is also easy for producers to hear from the music previews exactly what they are paying for, before the music is delivered.

This article explores the advantages and disadvantages of using royalty free music, as compared to a music composer writing specialized music, for a production.

What is Royalty Free Music?
Royalty free music is music that has a one-time payment in exchange for a license agreement to use the music, without having to pay royalties to royalty collecting bodies (as radio and television stations must do). License agreements can differ enormously, though common license agreements state that the music can be used in any kind of production, distributed any number of times, and for a never-ending time period. A common term of use of royalty free music is that the music cannot be resold in its original form. In the most common situation, royalty free music is music that can be used repeatedly in productions while only having one, initial payment.

What is a License Agreement?
A license agreement is a legal document that outlines how the royalty free music can, and cannot be used. The most common parts of a royalty free music license agreement state where the music can be used, how the music can be distributed and for how long the music can be used. Some license agreements are for a short period of time, such as a one off television spot, while others are for a timeless period. Another common part of a license agreement is what cannot be done with the music, most commonly selling the original music or re-recording it and re-selling it as new music.

The Benefits of Royalty Free Music
The three key benefits of using royalty free music are availability, choice, and price. Having music that is fast to find, fast to choose, and fast to satisfy the budget, resonates with the high demands on production companies.

The internet is filled with royalty free music libraries of exceptional quality. Within seconds, a producer can search for, and begin previewing music tracks. The amount of choice available is incredible, with music from all kinds of genres, composed for all kinds of applications. The power is behind the preview, with the choice being made easy by being able to hear exactly what will be delivered. Compared to contracting a composer to write exclusive music for a production, royalty free music can never let a producer down. If the preview is not what a producer is seeking, then it is simply a matter of moving onto another preview.

Of course price is always a factor in a production, and paying for exclusive music from a competent composer often comes with a hefty fee. Royalty free music does come at a cheaper price than a contracted composer and this should not be seen as a measure of quality, but simply as a measure of saving. With royalty free music, it is immediate whether the music is worth the cost, and fast decisions are integral to a fast production.

Is there a Downside?
Certainly there are negative sides to all things and why would royalty free music be any different? With the music having been written to only a concept and not a specific production, it may sound disconnected from the visuals, especially if the visuals follow a tight timing of events that need to be strictly supported by the sound. The music may not capture the feeling of the visuals as well as a specialized piece written by a composer.

There is also the downside of using the same music track that a group of other production companies are also using, though depending on where the production will be shown, this is not as bad as it seems.

Final Thoughts
Royalty free music has its place in every production company. It does save time and money, and can be chosen easily through the wealth of online royalty free music libraries.

Producers should not be discouraged from using royalty free music. In many situations, an audience will not be aware if a track has been used in another production or not. If a producer has concerns the same track is being used by competitors then the producer can always contact the composer and ask about a custom version of that royalty free music track.

Music is part of a production to create an effect. As long as the music can fulfill its requirement, then the saving in time, energy and cost, is the advantage of using royalty free music.

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