Accessing quality (preferably free) music for your yoga class can be a challenge for instructors everywhere, as copyright-protected music makes the best tracks tricky to get. Sound healing is integral to yoga, so incorporating suitable music is crucial in constructing a calming environment for your students. In this article, I will break down the easiest ways to obtain free, legal music so you will be back on the mat in no time, armed with the finest blissed-out playlists that will light up all your chakras. Finding and accessing the best music for your yoga class can be a frustrating experience due to copyright infringement laws that have been put in place to protect artists, ensuring they are paid royalties for using their music.
To find the best music for your yoga class use reputable free online audio streaming companies for royalty-free yoga music such as: Audio Mack, SoundCloud, YouTube Free Audio Library, Free Music Archive, and Moby’s Ambient Tracks. These companies not only deliver a wide variety of songs, instrumental tracks, and yoga-inspired sounds, but they also earn top marks for their vision statements, user-friendly interfaces and advanced search options.
Top 5 Free Online Audio Streaming Companies
#1 – Audio Mack
My number one choice for downloading free yoga music is an online audio streaming company called Audio Mack, whose company mission statement claims it is a “…free, limitless music sharing and discovery platform for artists, tastemakers, labels, and fans.” The ease of access is what sets this company apart from its competitors. Type “Yoga” in the search bar, and a long list of songs and sounds appears, ready to download and keep forever. Suppose you’re looking for unique tracks that are a little more outside the Sanskrit box. In that case, Audio Mack also carries a wide range of eclectic music, like afrobeat and emocore, to take your meditation to the next level.
#2 – SoundCloud
Coming in hot on the heels of Audio Mack, SoundCloud is my second pick for scoring royalty-free downloads of first-rate yoga tracks. This online company launched in 2008 and crowned itself the world’s largest music and audio platform, and for a reason! With over 150 million songs to choose from, the search can feel a bit daunting at first, but rest assured that it is here that you will find not only quality music but also supplementary yoga-specific ambient sounds like Chinese bamboo flutes, wave surf, and Tibetan singing bowls. The Basic SoundCloud plan is free and includes three hours of audio uploads. Still, if you want to upgrade to the premium version, “SoundCloud Pro Unlimited” has a relatively low cost of under $10/month.
#3 YouTube – Free Audio Library
The media titan YouTube has a Free Audio Library that grants the public full access to copyright-free music and other unique instrumental sounds. With this service, you can use any of these tracks in your practice, as most of the content produced is backed by Creative Commons, a nonprofit organization dedicated to granting copyright permissions so the public can download and share collections of creative works at no charge. Most tracks in the Free Audio Library are relatively short, so editing the music on a loop is recommended to match your yoga sequence length. (Pro Tip: Create a filter under “Creative Commons license” to search only the free compilations.)
#4 Free Music Archive
Another terrific company backed by Creative Commons licensing is Free Music Archive (FMA). Created in 2009 by the radio station WFMU, its mission is to offer free access to legal audio downloads of original music. FMA’s company vision states, “Together, we care about free access to original music and growing fair trade opportunities & our social impact in favor of talented musicians worldwide.” I like FMA because the platform is user-friendly, contains original content, and provides excellent customer service. (Pro Tip: The advanced search bar on this site allows easy navigation to find exactly what you’re looking for.)
#5 Moby’s Ambient Album
Unless you grew up fully immersed in the 90s techno culture (I feel seen), Moby might not be a familiar name to you. An American musician, songwriter, DJ, producer, and singer, Moby is known for creating catchy electronic dance beats for ravers worldwide. In 2016, he released a no-cost, transient-style compilation called Ambient Album, which contains over 4 hours of divine meditation euphoria; I find it especially fitting for Hatha-style yoga. Moby says of his album, “It’s really quiet: no drums, no vocals, just very slow calm pretty chords and sounds and things for sleeping and yoga, etc. [sic] and feel free to share it or give it away or whatever; it’s not protected or anything, or at least it shouldn’t be.” This collection is worth adding to your setlist, especially since it’s zero dollars.
Other Options To Consider
There is no way around it if you are looking for a wider variety of music selections; you will need to pay for the best tracks. Epidemic Sound, Meditation Music Library, Yogi Tunes, and Audio Micro are all excellent online audio streaming companies that require a monthly subscription.
Choosing the Right Music For Your Class
While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to choosing the right music for your yoga class, it’s always important to match the pace and style of the music to the corresponding type of yoga, and to match the music selection to your sequence length, as well. Here are three tricks I picked up along my yoga journey to create an ultimate playlist:
- Yoga Recipe: Calm — Energy — Calm
Think of your yoga playlist like a good book broken into three parts: beginning, middle, and end. The first sequence begins with calming grounding, sun salutations, and a gentle warm-up for 15-20 minutes; a good book introduction starts by laying the foundation for the story and offers insight into what is to come. The second sequence builds steam and focuses on flowing postures and poses for 20-30 minutes; this is middle of the book when the plot thickens, and the reader fully engages. And the final sequence is the soothing savasana for 10-20 minutes; the story resolves, and there is a sense of closure. Just as there is an asana flow, so should there be a flow and arch to your music, a natural rise, and fall.
- Spice It Up!
No rule says yoga can’t be fun! I once participated in a hot yoga class set to a playlist consisting of all Prince songs, and it was… awesome. Especially if you are a full-time instructor with repeat students, this is a fun way to reinvigorate the group with something different. While yoga is an excellent practice for relaxation, it can also be an enjoyable way to blow off steam. So, feel free to spice it up with a Moby Monday theme (with his non-ambient tracks), but give your students plenty of heads up about your plan, ideally a few sessions in advance. You want to be careful not to trigger anyone with a mainstream song with many lyrics; Heaven forbid you’re interrupted mid-asana by the sobbing sounds of a girl who just broke up with her boyfriend, and now you’re “playing their song!”
- Hire Local Talent
Giving local musicians the chance to showcase their talents in a live studio performance is a great way to incorporate a little flavor into your classes. Try posting an ISO (in search of) on social media or hanging a flyer in your town’s music shop requesting musicians who can play any of the following instruments: harp or monochord, Tibetan or crystal singing bowls, Native American drums, or any version of wood or Native American flute. As a former classical musician, I know how eager artists are to land quality gigs that could result in future business, so I would suggest striking a deal where they perform for a discount in exchange for letting them hand out business cards at the end. Perhaps they can book future weddings and events for your students.
(Pro Tip: String instruments can be a beautiful accompaniment, but make sure the musician is a professional; a novice string musician will be a regrettable choice.)
A Note On Copyright Infringement
Gym and studio owners know that if they want to play music in their facilities, they must acquire licensed permission. If you teach yoga online or anywhere outside a licensed studio, you may need to pay for the rights to play the music in your class. Ignoring these rules could result in copyright infringement penalties upwards of $150,000!
Yogi Tunes has a great FAQ section that breaks down the nitty gritty of Copyright Law of the United States: “Playing music during a yoga class, regardless of location, constitutes a public performance, which means you’re supposed to receive permission from the copyright owner. Rights are typically attained through the payment of a licensing fee to a Performing Rights Organization (PRO).”
If your studio has the proper licensed permission, you may be allowed to play your music from the usual suspects in streaming, like Spotify, Pandora, and SiriusXM. Here is a fantastic compilation of yoga playlists from one of my go-to streaming services, Spotify: https://software.kriya.com.au/best-yoga-playlists-on-spotify/
Frequently ed Questions
Royalty-Free Music, in the simplest terms, is music that is not free for public access. Royalty-free refers to music licensing established to prevent the public from taking a music creator’s work without paying a fee (royalties). You can obtain royalty-free music for either a one-time payment or subscription, and then you have permission to use the music however you like, like in a yoga class (as long as the studio has the proper Public Communications Licensure).
To learn more about starting your own Yoga Business check out my startup documents here.
Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult a legal expert to address your specific needs.
Meet Shawn Chun: Entrepreneur and Yoga Fan
I’m a happy individual who happens to be an entrepreneur. I have owned several types of businesses in my life from a coffee shop to an import and export business to an online review business plus a few more and now I create online yoga business resources for those interested in starting new ventures. It’s demanding work but I love it. I do it for those passionate about their business and their goals. That’s why when I meet a yoga business owner in public at a studio or anywhere else I see myself. I know how hard the struggle is to retain clients, find good employees and keep the business growing all while trying to stay competitive.
That’s why I created Yoga Business Boss: I want to help future yoga business owners like you build a thriving business that brings you endless joy and supports your ideal lifestyle.