Glossary of terms

Music Supervision

Short: A music supervisor handles the process of helping choose, negotiate, and incorporate pieces of music into visual media

Long: A music supervisor is the person in charge of placing music in films, TV shows, advertising, film and often even video games. Clients approach music supervisors with an idea of what kind of music they need for their project (or sometimes even specific ideas of songs they want), and the music supervisor then finds the appropriate music (whether existing tracks or arranging for specially composed pieces) and acts as a liaison between their client and the rights holders of the music. They work to arrange the appropriate licensing for the songs, and work to negotiate licensing deals that come in on budget for their clients. [About.com]

Sync Licensing

Short: A music sync license is needed for any existing piece of music to be used on any visual work.

Long: A music synchronization license - or sync license, for short - is a music license that allows the license holder to "sync" music to some kind of media output such as TV shows and movies, but any kind of visual paired with sound requires a sync license. A sync license gives you the right to use a song and sync it with a visual. This, with the permission of the rights owner, also allows you to re-record that song for use in your project, but if you want to use a specific version of the song by a specific artist, you also need to get a master recording license (see below). Typically, a sync license is obtained from a music publisher while the master recording license is obtained by from the record label or owner of the master. . [About.com]

A master license gives the license holder the right to use a recorded piece of music in a media project, often a film, TV show, commercial or some other visual creation, though the license does extend to audio projects as well. A master license is obtained from the person who owns the recording (in other words, owns the master). Often master licenses are obtained from record labels. [About.com]

Productions

Short: We can re-record existing tracks or write arrange and produce you a new bespoke track to your brief.

A bit longer: Commissioned music is new music written for use in a specific production (usually in a film or video production) - as opposed to "existing music" which is music that has previously been released eg on a CD.

Sonic branding

Short: Sonic branding (also known as audio branding, sound branding, acoustic branding or sonic mnemonics) is the use of sound to reinforce brand identity.

Long: Sound branding is increasingly becoming a vehicle for conveying a memorable message to targeted consumers, taking advantage of the powerful memory sense of sound. It encompasses many other tactics intended to convey organizational or product identity (who an organization is and what it stands for); enhance consumers' experience of a product or service; or extend an organization's relationship with its audience.

Creating a brand experience using sound is also within the area of sound branding. As brands now look to engage with their customers on a much deeper level, the opportunities for creating a sound branding experience that conveys a brand essence and soul is possible.

A sonic identity (or audio logo, sonic logo or sound logo) is usually a short distinctive melody or other sequence of sound, mostly positioned at the beginning or ending of a commercial. It can be seen as the acoustic equivalent of a visual logo. Often a combination of both types of logo is used to enforce the recognition of a brand. But it can also be a longer piece of music, one that evokes the emotion the brand want their customers to feel; excitement, safe, secure, love, warmth, etc. etc. and this may be used as the brand’s soundtrack across various platforms, from commercials or corporate events to on-hold music or online loops.

The sonic identity leads to learning effects on consumer's perception of a certain product. A melody is the most memorable sequence of sound, since, when a melody starts, the human brain automatically expects the ending. [Includes information adapted from Wikipedia.org]