Thank you thank you thank you, this is incredibly helpful! Just found your channel, and as someone who is about to go to college for music composition, your tips and knowledge is incredibly helpful!
Hey Ryan, great video as usual! I was wondering if you could delve into reliable ways to reach these libraries (for someone with experience but no placements) Thanks!
Hi Ryan, thank you for sharing this. I'm really curious ... how many of such songs are actually out there in music libraries? If I'd have to guess, you must have like 500 of such pieces out there on different libraries (at least). Sounds reasonable when you were doing that for a decade and keep producing like 50 pieces per year. Man, now I think you might even have even more than 500 pieces out there ... Keep it up, I enjoy your videos ... maybe for a future video, I'd like to see how you work together with different music libraries and how you apply for them.
That actually a really tough question. I have over 3500 tracks registered on ASCAP, but a fair amount of those are film cues or re-titles (aka same track but with different publishers). I have a folder of tracks that are "non exclusive", so if a new library comes along and wants to use things other people also have access to, they can have those. There's 400+ tracks in there. But there's also PLENTY of exclusive tracks. So maybe 1-2k?
Just found your channel this past weekend and I am already half way through all your vids. Excellent educational content. Thank you and look forward to more!
Thanks! Im very interested in this! I have an interesting body of work already. Thanks for the great content! (A lot of it available on spotify already too... not all, some are also available on my channel. ) take care! Looking forward to digging into your channel
So I have a question about instrumentation for music submitted to the libraries. Obviously an editor would want the whole score to be uniform sounding. Does this leave you limited to certain ensembles/patches that you write for? I'm sure the more experimental the sound is, the less likely it is to be picked.
I would think about the assumption of an editor worrying about uniform sound. It really depends on the production, but if it's a reality show or something (where a ton of my placements come from) then they'll use something with strings if it's appropriately sad, and a country band if it's appropriately happy for what they need. You are right though, an unusual or experimental sound, especially if it's a featured instrument, is going to limit the "usefulness" of a track.
Hey Ryan, Thanks for the video. Are those time signature changes for the breaks? 5/4 - ending with a 1 beat silence and 6/4 - ending with 2 beats silence? I have been struggling to write more production music, this video is extremely helpful! Thanks again!
Hey Ryan! Great video once again! I have a question though, when you work these kind of arrangements for TV spots, do you register each one of them to own the copyrights? Or is it only necessary to register them for royalties? How is this process?
Company does that too. The only exception would be if I wrote some tracks for myself and I didn’t know what to do with them yet, but almost always I write tracks based on a specific request like “we need 5 tense cues”.
So how do you get started with these companies and getting your music into these libraries? This is exactly what I would like to do! But obviously if it takes time, I would want to get started now. Thanks!
I happened upon your videos looking to get into sync music. I write more electronic music (non classical, not EDM). Do you have any tips or videos for that? What's your mindset when choosing which libraries to submit to? Thanks!
Hello, Ryan - I had a question about Royalities and companies like ASCAP/BMI. so I'm currently selling tracks, but not sure when I should sign up for one of these companies? is there a time where you suggest to hop on board. Maybe sooner than later or when track sales start scaling up? not sure if that makes sense, but ty for the time and video!
Ryan, when you put your library tracks on sites such as CrucialMusic/other, do you name them with a description of the music (Thriller cue #5) or do you name them with a track title (Into the Abyss) like you might use if putting them simultaneously as an album on e.g. Spotify? Which is best in your opinion for getting library music noticed by music editors?
I don't really put my tracks on sites anymore (I used to use AudioJungle but I barely make anything). Libraries come to me when they have a show or genre they need to fill. If possible spend your time trying to get in with libraries that have relationships with production. Find shows that have music similar to what you write and see if you can find out who supplies their music, then reach out and explain that you're writing because your style matches what they need to supply.
Great video. Got a question about flexibility of editing. You mentioned alternate stems. For your submissions, it sounds like a single piece consists of a collection of stems, giving an editor freedom to compile them in a variety of arrangements as you suggest in the video. Is that correct? I'm producing stock music clips now. With each clip being a single stand-alone recording, the editing flexibility is reduced. I can release multiple versions of various lengths myself, but if there is reverb bleeding into a rest the editing flexibility would be less than you would get with a bundle of stems. At least, this is what I infer from watching. Is there such a distinction between sync and stock, i.e. bundles of editable stems vs. multiple stand-alone versions?
@@RyanLeach Thanks, Ryan. I guess I'm asking about the way editors purchase a clip. For your market, do they get all of your versions as a bundle, or is it like stock licensing in which they would have to find those versions and buy the ones they want a la carte? The question occurred to me because you suggested that editors swap around sections of your clips. It seems like that would be unwieldy given a final mix of a track which could have reverb or transitions at those presumed resting edit points. On the other hand, if the reverb were on its own stem and the editor had other stems too, they could cut things up more easily. Is that the idea, or am I overthinking it?
@@jaijeffcomYou might be overthinking it. I would never put reverb on a separate stem. Usually a quick cross fade will smooth out any edit. I actually do not work with the editors directly so I can't say for sure, but I believe they get the entire bundle
No definitely not. Production value (does it sound “good”?) is incredibly important. If it sounds cheap it will make their project sound cheap and no one wants that. I think the Cinematic Studio libraries are the best mix of price and quality
Ryan, what length of library music would you say has the best chance of getting picked up by a music editor, all things equal--- 1 min, 2 min, or 3 min?
I guess a longer track with more flexibility I guess? So you can keep a pretty even vibe for extended periods. The context matters. For reality TV you need a track that builds in intensity and suspense, for video production I prefer a track that keeps the same vibe the whole time.
That depends entirely on the agreement you have with the library. If it's "exclusive" then no, you can't reuse that track anywhere else. If it's "non-exclusive" then yes! There's a gray area called "retitling" in which you can give a library a track and call it "Song A" and give the same track to another library as long as you call it "Song B". I think most companies are moving away from retitling for a number of reasons and you should expect to see exclusive agreements more and more often. I generally don't mind doing an exclusive agreement if I'm getting some upfront fee or if I have a relationship with the library and I know they have been able to get me placements in the past.
Several reasons, primarily that most of my tracks are the wrong mood (I’ve written a lot of suspense and tension music which would set the wrong tone in a UA-cam video!)
💰How I Make Money Writing Music in 2021 ua-cam.com/video/bQS6RPFXb3Y/v-deo.html
Some great advice and run through of your track Ryan.
Thanks!
Thank you thank you thank you, this is incredibly helpful! Just found your channel, and as someone who is about to go to college for music composition, your tips and knowledge is incredibly helpful!
Thank You, Ryan! Keep up the good work. I write for libraries, too, and I find Your video very useful! Great stuff!
I had no idea there was a way other than being John Willams, great video!
Hey Ryan, great video as usual!
I was wondering if you could delve into reliable ways to reach these libraries (for someone with experience but no placements)
Thanks!
Which library companies would you recommend to submit your music to?
Hi Ryan, thank you for sharing this. I'm really curious ... how many of such songs are actually out there in music libraries? If I'd have to guess, you must have like 500 of such pieces out there on different libraries (at least). Sounds reasonable when you were doing that for a decade and keep producing like 50 pieces per year. Man, now I think you might even have even more than 500 pieces out there ... Keep it up, I enjoy your videos ... maybe for a future video, I'd like to see how you work together with different music libraries and how you apply for them.
That actually a really tough question. I have over 3500 tracks registered on ASCAP, but a fair amount of those are film cues or re-titles (aka same track but with different publishers).
I have a folder of tracks that are "non exclusive", so if a new library comes along and wants to use things other people also have access to, they can have those. There's 400+ tracks in there. But there's also PLENTY of exclusive tracks. So maybe 1-2k?
Just found your channel this past weekend and I am already half way through all your vids. Excellent educational content. Thank you and look forward to more!
Very helpful! Thanks so much for posting!
Great advice! Thank you so much for all your help.
Thanks a lot Ryan for this video with great and really useful advices... Kind regards and blessings, Max
I would like to see some information on how to find libraries to submit files to.
mannn this is incredibly helpful, thank you once again
Thanks! Im very interested in this! I have an interesting body of work already. Thanks for the great content! (A lot of it available on spotify already too... not all, some are also available on my channel. ) take care! Looking forward to digging into your channel
This is notably helpful.
Thank you!
No worries!
So I have a question about instrumentation for music submitted to the libraries. Obviously an editor would want the whole score to be uniform sounding. Does this leave you limited to certain ensembles/patches that you write for? I'm sure the more experimental the sound is, the less likely it is to be picked.
I would think about the assumption of an editor worrying about uniform sound. It really depends on the production, but if it's a reality show or something (where a ton of my placements come from) then they'll use something with strings if it's appropriately sad, and a country band if it's appropriately happy for what they need. You are right though, an unusual or experimental sound, especially if it's a featured instrument, is going to limit the "usefulness" of a track.
Hey Ryan, Thanks for the video. Are those time signature changes for the breaks? 5/4 - ending with a 1 beat silence and 6/4 - ending with 2 beats silence?
I have been struggling to write more production music, this video is extremely helpful! Thanks again!
Yes exactly, they are to create very easy to edit breaks in case they don’t want a whole section
Hey Ryan! Great video once again! I have a question though, when you work these kind of arrangements for TV spots, do you register each one of them to own the copyrights? Or is it only necessary to register them for royalties? How is this process?
The library company handles that entire side of it. I just deliver the music!
@@RyanLeach but do you register to your PRO yourself or the company does that too?
Company does that too. The only exception would be if I wrote some tracks for myself and I didn’t know what to do with them yet, but almost always I write tracks based on a specific request like “we need 5 tense cues”.
So how do you get started with these companies and getting your music into these libraries? This is exactly what I would like to do! But obviously if it takes time, I would want to get started now. Thanks!
What music programs do you use Ryan?
I think that discussion would make a good UA-cam-Video too.
What virtual instruments do you use for acoustic instruments? In particular for orchestra instruments?
Lately I’ve been using Spitfire Symphonic libraries although I still use Cinematic Studio Strings regularly.
thanks for this great video. i've attempted several times to get my music on libraries and have no success. Are there any companies you recommend?
I happened upon your videos looking to get into sync music. I write more electronic music (non classical, not EDM). Do you have any tips or videos for that? What's your mindset when choosing which libraries to submit to? Thanks!
Hello, Ryan - I had a question about Royalities and companies like ASCAP/BMI.
so I'm currently selling tracks, but not sure when I should sign up for one of these companies? is there a time where you suggest to hop on board.
Maybe sooner than later or when track sales start scaling up?
not sure if that makes sense, but ty for the time and video!
Do you arrange church orchestra music?
Ryan, when you put your library tracks on sites such as CrucialMusic/other, do you name them with a description of the music (Thriller cue #5) or do you name them with a track title (Into the Abyss) like you might use if putting them simultaneously as an album on e.g. Spotify? Which is best in your opinion for getting library music noticed by music editors?
I don't really put my tracks on sites anymore (I used to use AudioJungle but I barely make anything). Libraries come to me when they have a show or genre they need to fill. If possible spend your time trying to get in with libraries that have relationships with production. Find shows that have music similar to what you write and see if you can find out who supplies their music, then reach out and explain that you're writing because your style matches what they need to supply.
When you were working on making library music tracks, how many did you try to make per day? What do you think is a good goal?
Great video. Got a question about flexibility of editing. You mentioned alternate stems. For your submissions, it sounds like a single piece consists of a collection of stems, giving an editor freedom to compile them in a variety of arrangements as you suggest in the video. Is that correct?
I'm producing stock music clips now. With each clip being a single stand-alone recording, the editing flexibility is reduced. I can release multiple versions of various lengths myself, but if there is reverb bleeding into a rest the editing flexibility would be less than you would get with a bundle of stems.
At least, this is what I infer from watching. Is there such a distinction between sync and stock, i.e. bundles of editable stems vs. multiple stand-alone versions?
I don't really think about the stems when I'm writing, I just output different variations when I'm done. "No strings" or "no percussion" for example.
@@RyanLeach Thanks, Ryan. I guess I'm asking about the way editors purchase a clip. For your market, do they get all of your versions as a bundle, or is it like stock licensing in which they would have to find those versions and buy the ones they want a la carte? The question occurred to me because you suggested that editors swap around sections of your clips. It seems like that would be unwieldy given a final mix of a track which could have reverb or transitions at those presumed resting edit points. On the other hand, if the reverb were on its own stem and the editor had other stems too, they could cut things up more easily. Is that the idea, or am I overthinking it?
@@jaijeffcomYou might be overthinking it. I would never put reverb on a separate stem. Usually a quick cross fade will smooth out any edit. I actually do not work with the editors directly so I can't say for sure, but I believe they get the entire bundle
@@RyanLeach Thanks, Ryan.
Ryan as a newbie to Sound Libraries, what Sound Libraries are a good start to submit too for a new writer? Can you submit Sibelius files?
No definitely not. Production value (does it sound “good”?) is incredibly important. If it sounds cheap it will make their project sound cheap and no one wants that. I think the Cinematic Studio libraries are the best mix of price and quality
Ryan, what length of library music would you say has the best chance of getting picked up by a music editor, all things equal--- 1 min, 2 min, or 3 min?
I guess a longer track with more flexibility I guess? So you can keep a pretty even vibe for extended periods. The context matters. For reality TV you need a track that builds in intensity and suspense, for video production I prefer a track that keeps the same vibe the whole time.
What's a bounce? A copy of one track to another track?
Exporting the final audio file
Can you submit the same track to multiple music libraries?
That depends entirely on the agreement you have with the library.
If it's "exclusive" then no, you can't reuse that track anywhere else. If it's "non-exclusive" then yes!
There's a gray area called "retitling" in which you can give a library a track and call it "Song A" and give the same track to another library as long as you call it "Song B". I think most companies are moving away from retitling for a number of reasons and you should expect to see exclusive agreements more and more often.
I generally don't mind doing an exclusive agreement if I'm getting some upfront fee or if I have a relationship with the library and I know they have been able to get me placements in the past.
But nowadays how composers beat free stock BGM?
Ryan, if you have thousands of tracks of your own, why do you bother with Sound Stripe?
Several reasons, primarily that most of my tracks are the wrong mood (I’ve written a lot of suspense and tension music which would set the wrong tone in a UA-cam video!)
gonna learn how to write music marketed to craft youtubers simply so I don't have to listen to the same song over and over and over.
Seeing that Clerks clip made me realize you look like a cross between a young Kevin Smith and a young Lin Manuel Miranda.
Given that Lin Manuel is only like three years older than me you get a heart for the repeated use of the word 'young' lol