How to Play Music in Zoom for Engaging Meets

Table of Contents

Introduction

Playing music during Zoom meetings and webinars can be a great way to set the mood, energize participants, and make your sessions more engaging and memorable. Whether you want to play background music, share a song, or have a virtual dance party, incorporating audio into your Zoom calls is easier than you may think.

This guide will walk you through everything you need to know to start enhancing your Zoom sessions with music. We’ll cover:

How to optimize your Zoom audio settings for music sharing
Step-by-step instructions for sharing computer audio and playing background music
Tips for incorporating music into Zoom webinars and presentations
Advanced techniques like sharing music in breakout rooms
Creative ways to use music for meeting icebreakers, transitions, and more
An overview of Zoom’s built-in music features
Troubleshooting advice for common audio issues

Follow along with this guide to learn how to seamlessly integrate music into your next Zoom gathering. Your meetings will never be the same!

Optimizing Zoom Audio Settings

To ensure the best audio quality when sharing music in Zoom, it’s important to configure your audio settings properly. Here’s how to optimize your settings for music playback:

Desktop App Audio Settings

On the Zoom desktop app, click on your profile picture then select "Audio Settings" to access the audio options.

Under "Speakers" select the output source you want meeting audio to come through. For music, high-quality speakers or headphones are recommended.
For "Microphone" choose the input device you will use to speak in meetings. Avoid selecting the same mic you use for playing music.
Toggle "Automatically adjust microphone volume" off so music doesn’t cause volume spikes.
Under "Music and Professional Audio", check the box for "High fidelity music mode" for better quality.
Click "Test Speaker and Microphone" to check your devices are working properly.

If you experience issues like echo or feedback when sharing music, try adjusting the "Suppress background noise" and "Echo cancellation" options under "Advanced".

Mobile App Audio Settings

In the Zoom mobile app, tap on your profile picture then choose "Settings" > "Meetings" to find audio options.

Select "Audio Source" to choose where meeting audio outputs from. Pick external speakers if available.
Choose the preferred "Microphone" source for speaking – typically the built-in mic.
Toggle "Mute my microphone when joining a meeting" off to allow music sharing.
Under "More Meeting Settings", enable "Original Sound" to preserve music quality.

Test your mobile mic and speakers first to catch any setup problems. Connecting headphones with an inline mic can improve audio quality on mobile.

Adjusting these settings appropriately will help you share great sounding music in Zoom! Let me know if you would like me to expand on any part of the audio setup process.

Sharing Computer Audio on Zoom

One of the easiest ways to play music during a Zoom meeting is by sharing your computer’s audio directly through the app. This allows you to play audio files or music from your computer and have it be heard by all participants in the meeting.

There are two main ways you can go about sharing computer audio on Zoom:

Sharing Computer Audio Only: This shares just the audio coming from your computer, without any accompanying visuals on the screen.
Sharing Computer Audio with Screen Share: This shares both the audio and visual screen content from your computer. The shared audio and video will be exactly what you see and hear on your own screen.

To share computer audio only:

Start or join your Zoom meeting and click the "Share Screen" button located at the bottom center of the meeting window.
In the window that pops up, click the "Advanced" tab.
Under "Audio", check the box for "Share computer sound only".
Click "Share" to start sharing your computer audio.

To share computer audio with screen share:

Click the "Share Screen" button and select the specific window or entire desktop screen you want to share.
Check the box for "Share computer sound" before clicking "Share". This will share both the visual screen content and any audio playing from your computer.
Manage your audio sharing using the controls at the top of the screen share window in Zoom. You can mute or unmute the audio here.

Troubleshooting Tips:

If others can’t hear your shared audio, ensure your computer speakers or headphones are turned up and selected as the audio input in your Zoom settings.
Avoid feedback and echoes by muting your physical microphone when sharing computer audio. Rely on the Zoom controls to mute/unmute.
If the audio is out of sync, try toggling the "Optimize for video clip" setting in the Share Screen window.

Sharing your computer’s audio is an easy way to play music, audio clips, or other sound during your Zoom meetings. With the proper setup, you’ll be able to seamlessly integrate audio into your virtual sessions.

Playing Background Music in Zoom Meetings

Playing background music at an appropriate volume level is key for an enjoyable Zoom meeting experience. The music should be just loud enough to set the mood, but not so loud that it’s disruptive or makes it difficult to hear participants speak.

Some great tools and apps for easily playing background music during Zoom meetings include:

Spotify – Spotify has preset playlists and radio stations perfect for background music. Use the volume slider to adjust the music to an appropriate level.
YouTube – YouTube has a huge music library. Create playlists ahead of time so you don’t have to keep switching videos during the meeting.
VLC Media Player – This free software allows you to create playlists and loop songs seamlessly. The audio equalizer makes it easy to adjust volume levels.
Pandora – Pandora’s streaming radio provides customizable stations that work well for background music. The thumbs up/down feature helps tailor the music over time.

When selecting background music, consider the vibe you want to create as well as the genre of music that would best suit your meeting’s purpose:

For creative brainstorming sessions, play upbeat tunes or ambient electronic music.
During webinars or lectures, choose gentle acoustics or classical to help attendees focus.
For social events or icebreakers, pick crowd-pleasing pop hits to energize the group.
When discussions could get heated, go for calmer instrumental or jazz to encourage civil discourse.

Follow volume and song selection guidelines to provide pleasant, unobtrusive background music for your next Zoom gathering.

Music for Zoom Webinars

Webinars are a popular way to deliver presentations and host events over Zoom. With larger audiences than regular Zoom meetings, it’s important to engage attendees and create an immersive experience.

Playing music during webinars is a great way to do this, but requires some specific setup and planning.

Setting Up Waiting Room and Intermission Music

Most webinars have waiting rooms enabled where attendees "wait" before joining the main webinar. This is a perfect opportunity to set the tone with music!

Choose upbeat, positive music to energize attendees as they wait. Instrumental music works well, as there won’t be lyrics overlapping when you speak to the waiting room.

During webinar intermissions, music can entertain attendees while screens are shared reminding them to grab snacks or use the restroom. Use more ambient, calmer genres for intermission music to provide a relaxed vibe.

Transitioning Smoothly Between Speaking and Music

Abrupt transitions between talking and music can disrupt the flow of your webinar. Follow these tips:

Use subtle audio cues like fading music out before speaking or fading in after talking.
Pause music a few seconds before finishing speaking to signal a transition.
Mute music instead of abruptly stopping it while presenting to prevent jarring silence.
Adjust audio levels so music is lower volume than your voiceover.

With planning, music and speech can complement each other to deliver polished, professional webinars over Zoom.

Advanced Zoom Music Sharing Techniques

Zoom offers advanced features that allow you to take your music sharing to the next level. Here are some techniques to enhance the audio experience:

Share Music in Breakout Rooms

Want to have different songs playing in each breakout room? It’s easy to share unique audio feeds to separate rooms. Just make sure to enable the setting to allow participants to share audio in breakouts. Then assign someone in each room to share their music.

Leverage Advanced Audio Settings

Under the Zoom Audio settings, enable options like "High fidelity music mode" and "Show in-meeting option to enable Original Sound." This allows you to transmit audio at a higher quality and bitrate. For music, use stereo rather than mono.

Connect External Audio Gear

For professional quality audio, use an external USB audio interface or mixer. This allows you to control EQ, compression, reverb and finely tune the audio output. You can assign different instruments or vocals to separate tracks for more control. The audio will sound crystal clear for remote participants.

Optimize Levels for Music vs Speech

Take advantage of Zoom’s audio filters to optimize levels for music vs speech. Use a compressor to even out vocals, and an EQ to shape the frequency response. This prevents the music from being painfully loud.

Collaborate with Remote Musicians

Zoom’s high-quality audio and video makes it possible to rehearse, perform and record music collaboratively online. Experiment with sharing parts in real-time, or multi-tracking recordings.

With some creativity, Zoom provides all the tools you need to share professional sounding music. Take your sessions to the next level with these advanced audio techniques.

Creative Uses of Music

Music can be used creatively in Zoom meetings and webinars to enhance engagement and set the right mood. Here are some ideas:

Setting the Mood and Tone

Play upbeat, energetic music as people join the meeting to promote an enthusiastic atmosphere.
Use calmer, classical or acoustic music during presentations to keep focus on the speaker.
Pick motivational or inspiring songs for sales meetings to get people excited.
Choose music that relates to your meeting theme or industry to reinforce messaging.

Engaging Attendees

Take requests and allow attendees to submit their favorite songs to play. This gets them involved.
Have a virtual dance party by playing fun, danceable tunes and inviting people to get up and move.
Play a song for attendees to guess as an icebreaker activity to kick things off.
Use music trivia quizzes related to your industry or niche to engage your audience.

Music-Based Activities

Host a virtual karaoke session for some laughs and team building.
Split people into teams and have a music video battle to see who can identify songs/artists the fastest.
Have a "guess the song from the emojis" activity. Type song titles only in emojis for people to decipher.
Play "name that tune" by playing short audio clips for attendees to guess the song title and artist.

Get creative with how you use music in your Zoom sessions to boost engagement, morale, and fun! Just be sure to follow any music licensing rules.

Zoom Music Features

Zoom has some built-in features that make sharing and listening to music easier during meetings and webinars.

Virtual Background Music

One fun way to incorporate music is to use Zoom’s virtual background music setting. This allows you to add subtle background music that will be heard by you and other participants when you have a virtual background enabled.

To enable virtual background music in Zoom:

Click on the up arrow next to Stop Video.
Select Choose Virtual Background.
Click on the "+" icon to upload your own image or video for a custom virtual background.
Check the box next to "I have the rights to use this image/video" and click Apply.
Once your virtual background is enabled, click on the up arrow again next to Stop Video.
Select Show Video Settings.
Under the Virtual Background tab, toggle on the setting for Play music when using a video background.
Browse the audio files and select a background track to play. The audio will only be audible when your virtual background is enabled.

This can be a nice way to set the tone or atmosphere during a meeting without having music disrupt your conversation. Just keep the volume moderate.

Taking Song Requests

Another engaging idea is to take song requests from attendees during a Zoom meeting or webinar. This could work for a music-themed gathering or as an icebreaker activity.

As the host, you could ask attendees to type their song request into the Zoom chat. Then compile the list and play short 30 second clips of each song. Make sure you have the rights to play the full recordings. This allows you to engage participants and get them involved in the music selection.

Licensing Considerations

If you will be playing full-length recordings during a public Zoom webinar, it’s important to ensure you have the proper rights and licensing. This includes music streamed from sites like YouTube or Spotify.

For personal meetings, you likely don’t need to worry about music rights. But for webinars with external registrants, you may need to pay for a music streaming license to legally broadcast songs. Consider the copyright requirements based on your specific use case and location.

Proper licensing helps compensate artists and ensures you share music legally on Zoom. Check services like SoundExchange or your performance rights organization for more guidance. Carefully review the terms of any music streaming subscription service as well.

Recommendations and Tips

When it comes to playing music on Zoom, there are a few best practices to keep in mind:

Use music intentionally – Don’t just play music without thinking about how it enhances your meeting or webinar. Carefully choose music that fits the tone and keeps participants engaged. Time your music selections appropriately as well.

Pay attention to audio quality – Optimize your Zoom audio settings, use high-quality audio sources, and avoid background noise for the best sound when sharing music. Mute your microphone when playing music to prevent feedback.

Respect others – Keep music at a reasonable volume so it doesn’t distract others. Get permission before playing explicit music. Allow participants to request songs.

Mind time delays – Account for audio delays when transitioning between speakers and music to prevent overlap.

Consider licenses – If publicly streaming music during webinars, ensure proper licenses are obtained. Stick to royalty-free music if unsure.

Do sound checks – Test your audio setup and do a quick sound check before meetings when sharing new music to catch any issues early.

Use Zoom’s tools – Take advantage of built-in features like audio filters and virtual background music to easily incorporate tunes.

Try different techniques – Experiment with using music for icebreakers, transitions, waiting rooms, etc. Find creative new ways to use music during sessions.

Optimize for mobile – Make sure your audio setup also works for participants joining via mobile devices. Test sharing music through the mobile app.

Enhance sections – Use music as a way to distinguish different segments of your meeting. Play energizing music during activities.

Following these tips will ensure you provide an optimal music experience during your Zoom calls and events. A bit of planning goes a long way.

Conclusion

Playing music can take your Zoom meetings, webinars, and virtual events to the next level. Throughout this guide, we’ve covered the key techniques for seamlessly incorporating audio into your Zoom sessions.

To recap, you now know how to optimize Zoom’s audio settings, share computer audio, play background music, and utilize advanced features like sharing music in breakout rooms. With the right setup, you can enhance engagement, set the mood, and make your Zoom meetings more dynamic and entertaining with music integration.

Don’t be afraid to get creative and experiment with different types of audio and music to find what works best for your needs. Refer back to the tips and recommendations in this guide whenever you need a refresher.

For further learning, Zoom’s support site contains additional tutorials on sharing audio. You can also check out video guides on YouTube for visual walkthroughs of Zoom music sharing.

The ability to incorporate music into virtual meetings is an exciting advantage of platforms like Zoom. Take your sessions to the next level and unlock the power of music for more engaging and impactful Zoom experiences.