Background music, often referred to as incidental music, plays a crucial role in establishing the mood and ambiance of various settings, from shopping malls and restaurants to social media platforms such as TikTok, and even larger productions like movies. Interestingly, the process of selecting or creating this music is often meticulous, involving an array of considerations.
One of the most important factors when choosing background music is ensuring that the music suits the environment or scenario it is intended to accompany. For instance, a high-energy pop track might not be the best fit for a serene spa, just as a serene, relaxing melody might not create the desired ambiance in a lively gym environment. Therefore, careful selection or creation of the music is required to enhance the overall experience effectively.
What’s more, in the case of digital content and video games, there’s an increasing demand for royalty free game music. This is music that can be used without the need to pay royalties or license fees for each use, per each copy, or volume sold, or a certain time period of use or sales.
The creation of Royalty Free Game Music involves numerous artistic and technical considerations. Composers need to create tracks that not only suit the atmosphere of the game but also are flexible enough to loop without seeming monotonous. They must also take into account the game’s pacing, narrative, and even the emotions that specific characters or situations might elicit.
Music instead of furniture?
Before the twentieth century, people listened to music while sitting in the armchairs of theaters or philharmonic halls. No one could even think that these works could be listened to “passively” while talking to a friend or a pleasant lady. But in the twenties, the eccentric French composer Eric Satie created three similar tunes to be played during intermissions. The audience didn’t understand what was going on – there was a call for intermission, but the musicians kept playing… So you have to stay in the hall? The composer had to run between the rows and urge people to talk, eat and drink without paying attention to the melody. He created music that would complement the space like furniture. That’s why Satie’s three tunes called “Hymnopedia” were called furniture music. A little later, Eric Satie suggested that couturier Germaine Bongar play his music in her store while customers made their choices. This is how one of the most powerful means of manipulation in the business world came about.
Drop Your Money
By the middle of XX century in the U.S., using surveys found that consumers are more pleasant to shop where some lighthearted melody is playing. Since then, music unobtrusively sucks money out of you. If the tempo of the music is fast, the customer spends less time in the store, as if adjusting to the tune, but he spends more money than he planned. Music creates an atmosphere of haste – the customer quickly grabs goods and goes to the checkout. This music is often played during sales in the mass market. Small prices, crowds of people and energetic music turns the head of fashionistas and fashionistas. Slow music also helps to increase sales, but it works where the goods are more expensive: stores of cosmetics and perfumes, porcelain dishes, Italian textiles, fine alcohol. This kind of music puts people in a trance, immersing them in dreams of a rich life, just like on TV.
Is background music also music?
Dmitry Ponomarenko creates his background tracks under the pseudonym Julian Slink. Here’s what he thinks: “Background music differs from music in the classical sense in that, first of all, it has to fit the scene, the situation, the YouTube video for which it is used. But it’s impossible to say that sad music is appropriate only for sad situations and funny music for funny ones. Sometimes upbeat music can be a perfect match for sad situations, creating an emotional contrast, while sad music complements the fun ones. How harmonious this looks depends on the skills of the director, stage manager, etc.
It should also be noted that background music is a separate genre. For example, movies – in order to write a melody for the background, they hire composers who know certain techniques, rhythms, melodies, tonalities, and chords that work for different situations and scenes. Naturally, the background music will be different from the rest because it must “adjust.” The director can also take some track in the ‘classical sense’ (rap, rock, jazz, dubstep, rap, whatever), and this music would also fit perfectly into the background.”
Julian Slink on his art
“As for me, my music is often put in the background of my videos, mostly by bloggers. I don’t have a philosophy of my own because I just write what I like. I try to use something new and just trying out different directions, trying to do always better. A lot of people say that my music is like “fairy tale music” in some moments. I write in FLStudio, analyzing tracks of other composers, watching tutorial videos on YouTube and all sorts of sites. I gather information from all available sources, which I advise everyone who wants to start writing music to do.