The music must truly be in the background, set at a volume that is comfortable for the learner and that doesn’t detract from the core message of the video. Our consensus? Background music can be supplementary beneficial for learning, as long as the song selection is relevant and relatable to the audience. This topic has been long-debated in the literature. Is background music distracting for learners?
And for topics that are notoriously dull, a groovy background track can improve view retention and engagement. It adds a little extra flavor and spice to your learning experience. It’s used as a trigger to bring the memory back.īackground music sets the feel and tone of your instructional video. That’s the end goal with background music. Just think for a second about your own experience: you know when an old song comes on the radio and it instantly transports your memory back to a time when you were younger? Well-selected background music has the power to deepen learning experience by emotionally connecting your audience to the content. If it’s not making your learning experience better, then why do it? Music shouldn’t be added to instructional videos “just because.” As instructional designers, every small decision we make (such as using background music in a video) should be an enhancement to the learning experience. Why add background music to instructional videos? And the science side requires use of data and demographics to narrow your scope and focus on your audience interests.
The art side requires a detection of ingenuity and uniqueness that will resonate with your audience. Selecting the right background music is a combined art and science. Wrong genre and it turns people off.īut when you get it right – mmm, it’s magical. Too loud and it’s distracting. Too up-tempo and it’s confusing. While it may seem like a granular detail, background music has the power to make or break your instructional video.
Have you given much thought to the background music in your instructional videos?