In this age of online music sharing, there are plenty of online music libraries at your disposal. From Last.fm to the Hype Machine, there is no shortage of musical outlets to choose from over the interwebs. However, many sites are plagued with advertisements and require you to sign up for monthly paid subscriptions in order to get rid of the pesky adds. However, one website is completely free of these restrictions and distractions.
This service is made possible by the online music library called Musopen. Musopen’s mission is to “set music free” to the general public in order for its users to listen, download and share music without worrying about any copyright infringements. They achieve this mission by obtaining musical recordings without copyrights or having its users upload their own personal music to the website. Musopen operates as a non-profit charity that received over $68,000 over the online fundraising site called Kickstarter (see my past article: https://salty.shelfinger.eu/getting-a-kickstart-on-your-music-projects/) in order to expand their online library. Musopen’s library predominantly consists of classical recordings since they is a lack of copyrights on this genre of music. While this may seem like a creation of Buzz Killington (given the high density of classical music in the library), it is very useful for indie film-makers to use in their films without the risk of legal allegations for the use of the music. Musopen also offers downloadable versions of sheet music from many famous classical composers as well to satisfy all of the piano junkies.