3 Keys to Finding the Perfect Song
Music is an important component of every video production; conveying a subconscious message from client to audience on a level that can’t be said with all the other parts of a video. Music tells the audience what to feel, if anything at all. Some of my favorite moments in film are based on the music cues, from the use of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in Tarsem’s ‘The Fall’, to the church fight scene in ‘Kingsman’ set to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ‘Free Bird’. There are 3 keys to finding the perfect song, and it all depends on the purpose, audience, and client.
Purpose
Knowing the purpose of the video you are working on will make countless selections and decisions much easier than working in the dark. Picking music for a wedding film is a completely different beast than a corporate identity film. If the purpose of your film is to convey the strong emotions of family, love, and fun, you already have a starting point to your search. Is it supposed to be informative or emotional, are you supposed to be absorbing all of the words, or feeling the weight of the final one? The purpose of your video starts the process of finding the perfect song by starting with a broad selection of factors to consider.
Audience
The audience of your video is also indicative of what music to layer in your timeline. The CEO of a event planning service is going to be looking for something completely different than a mother watching a birthday video. Staying close to your audience’s tone and emotional level will make the video personable and unique to the audience. It sometimes helps to visualize your project as the audience, asking whether this particular song is supposed to evoke certain emotions. Are you supposed to be pushing back tears or learning how to use wordpress? The music will inform these feelings with the most direct method.
Client
And finally, the most important thing to keep in mind while picking music is the client. The purpose of the video might evolve, and the audience may fluctuate in size, but the client will always be the core of your music selections. The best thing an editor can do to pick the best music is to know the client inside and out. Personality, preferences, past work, particularities (I’ll stop now), are all ingredients to the perfect song.
