Using Music and Sound Effects in Class Projects

On Monday, I wrote about finding royalty- and copyright-free images to use in creating multimedia projects. I neglected, however to add resources for music and sound effects. There are several resources that you and your students can use to add sound to your podcasts or multimedia projects without risking copyright violations. 

Unlike images, recordings of music are not in the public domain. Sheet music or lyrics with a copyright of 1922 or earlier can be used (changes in copyright law mean that no additional music will enter the public domain until 2019). You or your students just have to make the recording. It could be a great project for you to coordinate with a music teacher!

When I record my class' podcast, I use Apple's Garage Band software. This application comes with a large library of sound effects and music loops that are copyright-free. There are lots of options to choose from (and my students love adding effects like crowds cheering, etc.).

There are several websites that offer royalty-free music for download. Look carefully, though, to see if you need to purchase the tracks - it can get expensive! A few sources of free music are:

• RoyaltyFreeMusic.com has a program to provide access to free music for schools, students, and educators. They have some requirements for application, so read the details to see if your school qualifies.
• incompetech.com has a large library of music by composer Kevin MacLeod. The music is organized genre and mood. This music is licensed under Creative Commons. He suggests a donation to offset his costs, but doesn't require it. He does request that you credit him for the music that you use.
• PartnersinRhyme.com offers a large selection of royalty-free music for download or purchase. They offer several music and sound effects tracks for free for you to use in your projects.

One excellent (and creative) way to avoid issues of copyright is to have your students create the music that they use in their productions. This, of course, is more time consuming, but it offers the opportunity for students to have even greater ownership of the final product. Talk with your music teacher for ideas about how the students could become the composers!

Finally, Creative Commons has produced a Podcasting Legal Guide that includes a lot of information on copyright and other issues in producing podcasts.