Two Awesome YouTube Resources You May Not Know About

Chances are, if you are like most people, you will be visiting YouTube sometime very soon to watch a video. Maybe you’ll be watching your favorite stand up comedian, or a video on how to grill squash, highlights from the World Cup, or trying to find a favorite recording of a Mahler symphony. And chances are, just about all of these videos will have music in them.  Related to that, here are the two resources we promised:

1. YouTube’s Audio Library – Need background music for a video you are going to post to Youtube? How about sound effects? Normally you need a license to use content (music, images, sound effects) in conjunction with your video, but YouTube’s Audio Library is a collection of royalty-free music and sound effects that you can use in your video for free, no extra license needed (when posted on YouTube only – this does not apply off of the YouTube platform). More info here.
2. YouTube’s Music Policies Directory – Say you want to record a video of your ensemble performing a cover of a copyrighted song or work, to be hosted on YouTube. You will need a license from the copyright owner of the copyrighted work. YouTube’s Music Policies directory lets you search the directory to see the policies that the copyright owner of that work has put in place for YouTube. (More info here.) Now, not every copyright holder has agreements with YouTube, and they can also change their policies. If there is any question about a particular song’s policies, your safest bet is to follow the instructions provided by the Harry Fox Agency here, where they suggest contacting the publisher or copyright holder of the music directly.