October 28, 2013

Free Music: Five Places to Find It Online

By Wendy Boswell, 10-16-2013

Who doesn't like free, right? There are plenty of sources online for free libraries, databases, and catalogs for music of all kinds, from Top 40 pop to classical to music made especially to use in production-type settings. The following sites are great for discovering new styles, new genres, and new artists; all are completely free or ask for something very minor in return, like a link or some kind of credit to the original artist. Note: always check the fine print on every website before downloading any music to make sure that there are no restrictions. 

  1. FreeStockMusic: Features everything from Acoustic to Urban, with everything you can possibly think of in between. Need production music for a video you're making? This is a great place to turn something up. A royalty-free music license here means that you can use the music in anything you want, without any fees, forever. Categories range from Cinematic Classical to Rock N Roll and everything in between. The site is easy to use, easy to search, and can be used as a go-to resource for video projects that need the help of a little background music.
  2. Jamendo: Amazing site full of high-quality music from all over the world. Over 400,000 tracks are available here for streaming, downloading, and sharing with friends. This is a great source for discovering the "next big thing" - and if you are an artist looking for an online venue on which to share your music with a large audience, this is a good place to check out. Definitely a good choice if you're looking for music that is off the beaten path.
  3. Audionautix: Pick a genre, pick a mood, pick a tempo, and hit "Find Music" - you're off and running at this site that features an incredible variety of music available for both personal and professional usage. All that is required if you use it somewhere online in a project is a simple link back to where you found it; not bad for the quality and selection of the music you can find here. 
  4. Newgrounds Audio: Known mostly for games, Newgrounds Audio gives artists from all over the world a chance to showcase and share their music, as well as a great resource for users to download and listen to great music - mostly techno and game-related - themselves. Plus, who doesn't love a little game time with their music, right? 
  5. Classical Music Online: From Chopin to Scarlatti to Bach to Mozart, you'll be able to find great works from classical composers here. Search by composer, genre, or concert; there's an alphabetical list of both composers and artists that can help you track down what you're looking for quickly. Click to play music in your browser; you'll see a pop-up window that gives you the option to download the piece of music you're listening to direct to your computer. Many songs also offer a video link of the actual song being performed, which is a nice touch. Search through Collections to see "hubs" of music by orchestra or artist all in one place. 
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