If I see another screencast using the iMovie default songs, I’m going to go nuts. Music sets the tone for how you want others to perceive your company and choosing a generic soundtrack is like branding yourself boring. In the past, videographers were forced to work with lawyers to gain appropriate licenses for samples. Thanks to the Free Music Archive and a number of other services, we’re free to use original songs while still maintaining the rights to attribution. This morning’s launch of the Free Music Archive’s guest curation series further expands on this environment of collaboration.
Rather than forcing users to blindly navigate through the seemingly endless supply of CC-licensed tracks, clueless music seekers like myself can look to musicians for inspiration and track discovery. Creative Commons invited developer and ccMixter contributorVictor Stone to curate the community’s first guest playlist. Stone’s mix is entitled, “Above Ground Collection” as opposed to the underground and experimental tracks we so often see in music file sharing communities. Stone describes this as a playlist of pop and R&B “by producers who have an ear for the popular without sacrificing artistry.” For those of us looking for decent demo music, this may be a good place to start.
Users can stream and download the curated playlist from the Free Music Archive or they can visit the ccMixter Editor picks for new podcasts, downloads and popular tracks. If you’re a startup company in need of a video demo, consider spending the extra hour on ccMixter and choose a song that gets people pumped to register.
