As an online, full service licensing platform, Musicbed takes the confusing and daunting parts out of the licensing process. It even makes it somewhat fun to find music for your project. With a roster of about 650 indie artists spanning a wealth of genres, Musicbed promises to help you find the perfect score, license it at a very reasonable price, and make sure you’re covered legally without overpaying for uses you don’t really need. The process is smooth. And the website is pretty sleek, too.

You’ll still want to familiarize yourself with terms like Sync/Master Use licensing, perpetual use, single use, and commercial vs non-commercial works. A good place to start is Musicbed’s Knowledge Base, but be sure to also see our other posts on music licensing.

Without further ado; Trousdale.

Trousdale is a pop/folk band out of the University of Southern California’s esteemed Popular Music program. Known for their emotive harmonies and haunting lyrics, Trousdale’s music is defined by its beautiful arrangements and truthful stories. Their five members came together in the fall of 2014 and have been inseparable ever since. Quinn D’Andrea, Georgia Greene and Lauren Jones make up Trousdale’s vocals, with Jack DeMeo on guitar and Madi Vogt on drums/percussion.

You can visit Trousdale on Facebook, Instagram, Youtube or SoundCloud. Or simply enjoy their ROUND 1 submission, Lure Me In, right here:

Next in our artist spotlight series is Jesse Walton.

By the age of 16 Jesse had already been trained in classical and acoustic guitar, piano, and had an accomplished understanding of music theory. He went on to study Music and Music Technology at the East Sussex Academy of Music, where he excelled in composition and performance. He has completed a degree in Commercial Music at Canterbury Christ Church University, and is now taking his experience and expertise forward into what is sure to be a long and successful career in composition for film and television.

Please enjoy his song, I Hit The Ground:

And so the producers of the film teamed up with us to conduct a Song Search, hoping to find the perfect artist (or artists) for the soundtrack.

ROUND 1 of the Song Search generated a ton of great submissions and presented the producers with a lot of inspiration for how to move forward. Of the many submissions, six were chosen for ROUND 2, in which the songwriters are asked to write and record a rough demo of an original song specifically for The Storyteller. The six are now hard at work and we’re pleased to introduce them all, one by one.

And so, please meet Frank Cogliano.

Frank Cogliano is an Emmy nominated composer and multi instrumentalist based in Brooklyn, New York. He has produced songs and composed scores for in dozens of TV shows and films, and also produces pop music with up and coming vocalists. He also regularly performs as a guitarist with internationally touring live acts.

We’re excited to hear what Frank will be writing for us for ROUND 2 of the Song Search!

It’s important. We can all agree on that. It can even elevate your project to another level of engagement. But how do you go about getting that perfect score for your project? Well, you start with the composer, of course.

Here are composer Jongnic Bontemps’ suggestions for how you go about finding a composer to work with.

We have many more videos with Jongnic on the way, so be sure to check back often. Or even better, subscribe to our newsletter and/or YouTube channel and we’ll let you know when the next one is online.

ROUND 1 of the Song Search generated a ton of great submissions and presented the producers with a lot of inspiration for how to move forward. Of the many submissions, six were chosen for ROUND 2, in which the songwriters are asked to write and record a rough demo of an original song specifically for The Storyteller. The six are now hard at work and we’re pleased to introduce them all, one by one.

And so, please meet Billy Bouchard.

Billy Bouchard is an independent singer and songwriter with roots in folk, punk and garage. Originally from Providence, Rhode Island, Bouchard grew up listening to almost entirely country music radio in his working class boyhood home. As soon as he could force his hand to shape power chords, Bouchard started forming punk and hardcore acts playing in and around the Providence area. The first time he set foot in a studio his band would be signed to a label (Atlantic Records). The independent ‘noise’, art rock and theatre scenes in Providence would prove to have a lasting effect on his approach to music in the years to come. After a decisive move to Oakland, California, Bouchard would go on to collaborate with dozens of artists (Bart Davenport, Christian Burns, Aaron Pfenning of Chairlift, The Greater Good, The Plus Ones, Samiam) recording for a slew of labels, write and record with grammy award winning producers (Jeff Saltzman, Chris Dugan) and playing live in over 40 different countries.

Residing in Brooklyn for the better half a decade now, has furthered the evolution in Bouchards approach. The influences are many and Bouchard seems able to humbly meander from one aesthetic to it’s kin with aplomb. If you weren’t paying close enough attention you might dismiss him as another in a series of folky troubadours pawning off their nostalgic wares without shame. But upon closer inspection, it’s clear Bouchard is reaching much deeper. Touches of psyche, country, blues and a strong penchant for fascinating guitar approaches (including some adept finger styles) get sprinkled into his repertoire. Bouchard has come a long way from his humble start, but if you’re listening closely enough, it’s chronicled beautifully.

You can learn more about Billy Bouchard on his website, on BandCamp or on SoundCloud.

Please enjoy Billy’s submission for The Storyteller Song Search, Brackishly:

Allow us to introduce to you, one of the six; Rachel VanSlyke.

In the spring of 2008, this adventurous music maker set out on a 26 plus-city tour sprawling from South Florida to Canada. Many of the shows involved raising awareness and funds for local community bike co-ops and community centers – which explains why she did this 4,100-mile journey on a bicycle. This solo/self-supported, pedal powered trek was both to promote the new album, and raise awareness for sustainability and environmental issues. Her most recent release, Help is on the Way (February 2015), has all ready received 4 songwriting awards.

You can find Rachel’s music on ReverbNation and on iTunes, where you can purchase three of her albums. Please enjoy one of her submitted songs, Leaving:

First up is Anielle Reid.

Anielle Reid is an American singer-songwriter and banjoist based in NYC whose music has scored the Australian short IN TUNE, has been featured in the benefit album for the non-profit RAINN, and has been featured on non-commercial radio including NPR.

Anielle has a single and an EP available for purchase on Google Play, iTunes and Amazon. You can also visit her on Facebook, Youtube, her official website or follow her on Instagram.

Here’s a beautiful video for her song submission, Morality:

There is a kind of intimacy when singing harmony with another person that you don’t get anywhere else. You can go into a kind of trance together – a sort of meditation or a haze with nothing but vibration between you – and then when it’s over, you open your eyes and the world comes rushing back. Sometimes it makes you laugh and have this feeling of sharing something you can’t really explain with words. I think this is common for singers – at least it was for me – and I wanted to see if there was a way for us to capture that feeling in story and music. – Joe Crump, Director of The Storyteller

What would The Wizard of Oz be like without Judy Garland’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow?” Can you imagine Star Wars or Indiana Jones without John Williams’s heart-lifting score? Music adds personality and communicates emotions that the characters are feeling in ways words cannot.   It can also transcend the story and connect the audience to your theme in such a way that every time they hear your film’s music, they feel the emotions from that moment in your film.

Does this classic music movie moment make you want to dance?

The music is integral to the story. In fact, much of the story is told visually while the music plays. Our goal was not to make a musical, but to use music as a part of these characters personality and lives. You can’t separate the music from this film without having a radically different, and I think, less interesting film. – Director Joe Crump on the music of The Storyteller

So now that we understand the power of music in film, let’s discuss where and how you can acquire your film’s soundtrack.

There are two main sources for acquiring music: Music Libraries, similar to the Stock Footage Libraries discussed in our previous article and/or composing an original soundtrack.

When working from a music library, the Editor/Assistant Editor, Filmmaker and or the Music Supervisor will search for a particular type of music, download a sample the Editor can then place in your edit. If you decide you’d like to license that piece of music, you would report the name of the track, the duration for which you’re using it, it’s composer and copyright information to the Music Library in order to complete the license. All of this information would be complied on a Music Cue Sheet.

There are benefits to licensing music from a library. You can often negotiate a deal; depending on how many songs (or total duration) is going to be licensed. This type of music licensing is particularly helpful when the budget is low. The negative is that you are searching for something to fit your project after it has been shot, rather than commissioning music that can grow and adapt with your project.

The other option when it comes to music is to commission its creation in tandem with the filmmaking process. This means that the music will be designed specifically for your film and you can/will work with the composer to create a unique song or instrumental piece that merges into your unique film. This is the process that The Storyteller is involved with now.

We kept writing lyrics and snippets of lyrics – never quite finding exactly what we wanted, but skirting around it all. Our hope is that the material we wrote will work as a guide and make it easier for a composer to capture what we were trying to do. – Director Joe Crump on The Storyteller’s song search. 

So now that you’ve found the music you want in your film, let’s go over how to license it. Believe it or not, when you’re acquiring music/songs, it’s not a one-stop shop. There are two key definitions to know: score music licensing and sync licensing.

Score Music Licensing basically is the actions of acquiring the appropriate licenses and copyrights for the music that you want to be in your film – your score. Whether this music is from a library, a pop hit or specially composed for your film, you still need to legally acquire your score.

The search for music, shaping of your score and acquiring the licenses is typically done by a Music Supervisor. It’s their job to bring together the musical tone of your film, but also to make sure the legal paperwork is in order, so you can safely use the music the way you want to. Though it can be a very technical job, their work starts in the creative. They sit and talk with the filmmaker about how music will play into the overall emotion of the piece. They also look over the script and determine how much music the film is going to need. Both of these things give the Music Supervisor an idea of what kind of music or composer they should be looking for, as well as what kind of budget is needed. Once a song or piece of music has been selected, the next step is obtaining the sync license.

Sync licensing refers to a music synchronization license. This is a license that “allows the holder to ‘sync’ music to some kind of media output.” Basically, it enables you to add the music to your film. It also means that you can re-record that song for your film, i.e: you can create a special version of that song for your film and then edit it into said film. It’s important to note that this license covers a specific period of time and how the song can be used. This license is a one-time fee – meaning that you do not have to re-acquire the license every time the film is viewed.

So you have your song, you know you need a sync license, but who do you go to get it? That would typically be the music publisher. They are the ones that you (and your Music Supervisor) will negotiate the fee with. Keep in mind that in some cases you may want to license a song or a piece of music that is not represented by a publisher. In that case you would have to negotiate directly with the composer or in some cases a record label.

Question, Heather: I want to license the original recording of a Beatles song, do I only need a sync license? The answer is (sadly) no. If you want to use a specific version of a song, then you also need to acquire a master recording license from the owner of the master (this could be either the artist or the record label.).

Learn from the people that do the job. Check out this very informative Q&A with actual Music Supervisors.

A key part of the Music Supervisor’s job when licensing the music is dealing with the copyright. A music copyright is divided into two parts: the publisher’s share and the composer’s share.

Think of the composer’s share like this: When a composer or song writer composes a piece of music, like the writer of a film, they are the author of that music. This means that, even though the company that publishes the music may change over time, that composer will always own part of the music.

The publisher’s share is the part of the song that can be licensed. When a publishing company obtains the song/music from the composer, they are also obtaining the copyright for the song. This copyright is the publisher’s share. When the music is licensed, you are obtaining it through the publisher’s share but the composer will also get paid because he/she always owns a share of the music.

It’s important to note that no writer or film needs to limit itself to ONE type of music. If your character suddenly bursts into an original song, commissioning music is the best option. Then, if later in the story there’s a high-speed chase, a thrilling compassion might be appropriate. If the story ends with every character dancing to “In Your Eyes,” licensing is the way to go.   Your film’s music is only limited by your story, which is only limited by your imagination. As such, it’s important to look at ALL types of music licensing!

In addition to our song search, we are looking at all of these [commissioning and licensing music] things and talking to everyone we know. It is our hope to find the right person or people for the job soon since it’s such a vital part of this story and it all has to be in place before we start shooting. – Director Joe Crump on bringing all the music together in The Storyteller

Join us next time in The Storyteller series when we explore Financing – Making A Film With Your Own Money Or With Financial Backing? Pitfalls, what to do and what not to do! Until then… here’s the trailer to an Oscar winning movie about one of the greatest composers ever!