I'm looking for suggestions for instrumental music to be used in the background of a radio piece.

December 16, 2006 11:45 AM

I am working on a documentary radio piece and I'm looking for some instrumental music to use in the background. I've stumbled across some great instrumental stuff, but most of it is incredibly sappy. The problem with this is that my story is not. I'm looking for relatively upbeat music, not music to break up to. Can anyone suggest some interesting instrumental artists or collections? Maybe a movie soundtrack?
posted by erikcore to media & arts (14 comments total)

Maybe too techno-ey, I don't really know since I mostly don't listen to techno, so don't really know what it usually sounds like, but anyway I love me some Vitalic. If you haven't seen this video, I just have to make you.

There are also some dazzling instrumental tracks and interludes by the Future Bible Heroes (Stephin Merritt) I recommend. Pretty cosmic sounds, there.

Combustible Edison is a mainstay. I would like to get my ears on some more stuff like they do.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 11:56 AM on December 16, 2006

The Craig Dunsmuir Solo Guitarkestra!!
Glissandro 70!!
do make say think!!
posted by loiseau at 12:40 PM on December 16, 2006

This question is too broad - there are thousands of instrumental records out there with all kinds of different feelings about them. Can you tell us something about the movie? What's it about? Who is in it? What kind of milieu?
posted by dydecker at 1:23 PM on December 16, 2006

er, not movie but radio piece.
posted by dydecker at 1:24 PM on December 16, 2006

Pretty nearly any ska instrumental would work. I second needing more info.
posted by ardgedee at 1:46 PM on December 16, 2006

Can you use anything you want? Or does it have to be broadcast safe?
posted by Kloryne at 2:23 PM on December 16, 2006

Aphex Twin?
posted by markcholden at 3:16 PM on December 16, 2006

lots of free samples of stuff at garageband you can loop. you might also consider checking out cnet downloads--they put up a lot of stuff by newcomers...
posted by DudeAsInCool at 3:27 PM on December 16, 2006

yeah, markcholden, i definitely thought of richard d james. especially druqks, the double album from a few years ago. a couple of the tracks were used in the new marie antoinette film recently. the friend i went with had no idea they were aphex twin but really liked them (she usually doesn't like "that kind of thing"). definitely hip without being too sappy.

but, erikcore, can you come back and tell us more about this radio piece? i agree that music can make or break something, but i really can't picture what you're going for here yet.
posted by mosessis at 3:40 PM on December 16, 2006

Hey there, thanks for all the responses. Also, sorry for the ambiguity. To be very specific, the story is about a tall club's annual weekend getaway at a Pocono Mountain resort. The weekend culminated in a big dance with a Wild West theme. At this stage I'm not concerned with it being broadcast safe. I will be submitting this as part of a portfolio of work that will only be heard by certain individuals. Electronic music really wouldn't jive with the subject matter. Folky? Acoustic? Upbeat? It's a quirky story. I hope that helps you get a slightly better feel for what I'm after.
posted by erikcore at 4:01 PM on December 16, 2006

There's a record of some lesser-known Hindemith works that might be worth checking if you can find it. It's reviewed here (Google cache). The Rondo was written for the Plöner Musiktag and seems very NPR-ish to me.
posted by jet_silver at 4:21 PM on December 16, 2006

NPR lists the music interludes they use in between stories and reports. See this page on their website. http://www.npr.org/templates/music/

There are liitle sound "clips" that you can listen to until you find one that suits you. The only problem is that you can't search by music type. Most seem to be instrumental.
posted by butters at 5:37 PM on December 16, 2006

In that case you might want to go for some of Leo Kottke's solo pieces. His earlier stuff, when he was still trying to prove his skills, is more frantic and cheerier.

You could also go for any arbitrary minute of the thousands of hours of bluegrass jams available.

Or to be totally predictable, 'Hoedown' from Aaron Copland's 'Rodeo'.
posted by ardgedee at 6:03 PM on December 16, 2006

Would something from a band like Shark Quest be more in line with what you're thinking?
posted by leesh at 6:45 PM on December 16, 2006