Journal · Guide

How to commission custom music: a complete guide

Commissioning original music is one of the highest-leverage decisions in a film or a brand launch, and one of the least explained. Most people only do it a handful of times, so the process feels opaque: what do you send, when do you start, what does it cost, and what exactly do you own at the end? This guide walks the whole path, from the first email to the final master, for anyone commissioning music for a film, a campaign, a trailer, or a brand. It is written from the other side of the table, by a composer who does this every week.

What commissioning custom music actually means

Commissioning means hiring a composer to write original music specifically for your project, rather than licensing something that already exists. The distinction matters because it changes what you get: not a track that fits approximately, but music built to your frames, your brand, and your emotional arc, and owned on terms you agree.

There are really three ways to put music on a project, and choosing well is half the battle. Library (or stock) music is pre-made and licensed non-exclusively: fast and cheap, but the same cue can appear in a competitor's ad next week. AI-generated music is faster still, but as of now it is generally unownable and carries unresolved provenance questions, which I cover in the field guide to AI in music. Custom music is commissioned to your story and becomes your asset. The honest rule: use library or AI for disposable, functional audio, and commission custom music for anything an audience will associate with your film or brand, the argument at the heart of custom music versus library music.

When to bring a composer on

Earlier than most people think. For film, the ideal is to involve a composer around the first assembly or rough cut, once the story shape is clear but before picture is locked, so the music can be written into the edit rather than wallpapered over it afterward. For a brand or campaign, bring the composer in while the creative concept is forming, not after the film is shot and the launch date is three days away. Music written under real time pressure can still be excellent, but starting early buys you the one thing that makes scores feel inevitable: the chance to shape music and picture together.

Writing the brief: what to prepare before you reach out

You do not need a musical vocabulary to write a good brief. You need to communicate feeling, function, and constraints. The strongest briefs answer five things.

• The story and the feeling. What is this, and what should the audience feel? Describe the emotional journey, not the instruments. “It should feel like hope arriving too late” tells a composer more than “use strings.”
• References. Two or three tracks or scores you love, with a note on why each one works for you. References are the fastest shared language, as long as you say what you are pointing at, the tempo, the mood, the instrument, not just the song.
• Function and format. Where does the music live? A 30-second cut-down, a two-minute title sequence, a 15-minute exhibition score, a loopable brand bed? How many cues or versions?
• Timeline. Your real delivery date, and any milestones in between.
• Budget range. Even a rough band. It is not a trap; it lets a composer propose the right scope (programmed vs live players, one cue vs a suite) instead of guessing.

What drives the cost

There is no fixed rate for commissioned music, because the price is assembled from variables, not read off a menu. Understanding the drivers lets you shape a budget intelligently instead of being surprised by one.

The single most effective way to control cost is to lock the emotional direction early, so revisions happen on a piano sketch rather than on a finished, orchestrated, mixed master. That is not just an artistic preference; it is the difference between changing a sentence and re-shooting a scene.

Rights and ownership: what to agree up front

This is the part nobody enjoys and everybody needs, and it is far easier settled at the start than renegotiated at the end. Four terms carry most of the weight.

• Exclusivity. Is the music yours alone, or can it be licensed elsewhere? For brand and campaign work, exclusive is standard, an asset nobody else can use.
• Media and territory. Where and how can it run, film, broadcast, online, paid ads, and in which regions?
• Term. For how long, a campaign flight, a few years, or in perpetuity?
• Stems and deliverables. Do you receive the separated stems and alternate versions, or just the final mix?

A clear rights conversation up front is also a provenance safeguard, increasingly a contract requirement rather than a courtesy, especially where AI tools are in the picture. Agree it in writing, and there are no surprises later.

How the work actually flows

Every composer works a little differently, but a healthy custom commission moves through the same milestones, each a checkpoint where you stay in control.

• Brief and scope. You share the story, references, timeline, and budget; you get back a scoped proposal and an honest read on what is possible.
• Piano sketch. The core idea, at the piano, before a single orchestral part is written, so emotional direction is locked cheaply and early. No wasted rounds.
• Score and produce. The sketch becomes a full hybrid-orchestral arrangement, built to your frames and revised against the picture.
• Mix and master. The music is mixed and mastered to translate everywhere, from a cinema system to a phone speaker, and delivered release-ready.

The through-line is that you are involved at every milestone, and nothing moves to the next stage until the direction feels right. That is the whole point of commissioning rather than buying off the shelf, described step by step in how a custom score gets made.

Deliverables and formats

Agree the deliverables at the brief stage so the final handover is boring, in the best way. A typical custom commission delivers the full mixed and mastered master in the formats you need (high-resolution WAV for broadcast and film, plus streaming-ready versions), the length variations and cut-downs your campaign requires, and, where agreed, the separated stems so your team can re-balance or re-edit later. If the music is going to picture, confirm frame rate and delivery spec early. If it is a brand asset, confirm the loop points and the short-form edits up front.

Choosing the right composer

Reels and credits tell you what someone can do; the conversation tells you whether they should do yours. Listen for range across different emotional registers, not just one signature sound, and for someone who asks about your story before talking about their gear. For film specifically, there is a deeper guide to judging fit, reels, and the red flags in how to hire a film composer. Above all, you are hiring someone answerable, a person who signs their name to the work and can be trusted with a feeling, which is exactly the thing library and AI cannot provide.

The commissioning checklist

A quick pre-flight before you send that first email.

• You can describe the feeling and function of the music in a sentence or two.
• You have two or three references with a note on why each one fits.
• You know the format and length (cues, versions, cut-downs).
• You have a real delivery date and any interim milestones.
• You have a budget range in mind, even a rough one.
• You know the rights you need: exclusivity, media, territory, term, stems.
• You are reaching out early enough for music and picture to shape each other.

Frequently asked questions