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Create a Slide Show or Music Video in PowerPoint

Add Sound and Video

• Extract or Create a Music File
• Using Audacity to Edit and Convert Audio Files
• Add Background Music
• Should I embed or link my sound file?
• Using Sound and Video
• Record Narration

Where do I get a music file?

Extract part of a track from a CD that you own:

• Rip a track from your audio CD, using Windows Media Player. See this tutorial for instructions.
• Use Audacity (free audio editing software) or Nero in the TLMC (IACC 150C). You can extract as much of the track as you need and edit the track to customize it (cut and paste, add fades, etc.). Use Audacity tutorials to do these common editing tasks.
• Fair Use guidelines say you can use no more than 10% or 30 seconds of a song (whichever is shorter), so if you have a slide show longer than 30 seconds, you can loop the sound in PowerPoint or, in an audio editing program, combine 30-second clips of more than one song.
• Use Windows Media Player (comes with Windows).

Find music on the Web:

• There are many sites on the Web where you can find music to use in your slide show. Creative Commons is one such site, and others are listed on page two of the TLMC's handout on Copyright Guidelines and Friendly Web Sites.

Create your own soundtrack:

• Use Garageband, a program in the iLife suite on the Macintosh, to build your own soundtrack. Ask for help at the TLMC.

Once you have your music, you can either link or embed your sound file in your slide show.

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• Use Audacity (free audio editing software) to edit (cut, paste, add fades, etc.) and convert audio files. Audacity is available on the computers in the IACC or download it free to your computer.
• For more information, see these excellent Audacity tutorials at the Audacity Web site.
• NOTE: Audacity does not work with .wma files. First, convert them to .mp3 in Nero (at the TLMC) or when you rip files using Windows Media Player, change the file format to .mp3. See the tutorial for instructions.

This information is for students who need to create a music video in PowerPoint, a self-running PowerPoint slide show with background music.

For help with extracting or creating a music sound file, see the Sponge section above on extracting or creating a music file.

Once you have your sound file, we recommend that you embed the file in your PowerPoint presentation. When you embed a file, the sound file does not need to be present for the sound to work.

For instructions on how to embed your sound file and make the music play throughout the presentation, see the tutorial Adding Background Music by Embedding the Sound File. (Note: These instructions are specific to PowerPoint 2003.)

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Embedding vs. Linking (PowerPoint Help)

A quick reference to information about embedding vs. linking can be found in PowerPoint 2007 Help. To access Help in PowerPoint:

1. Click on the question mark icon in the upper right corner of the PowerPoint main screen, or press F1 on the keyboard when the PowerPoint screen is active.
2. In the Help window, type embed sound in the Search box.
3. Click on the Search button.
4. Click on the second link that shows up under results, titled "Embedded and linked sound files in a presentation."

Embedding the Sound File

For the English PowerPoint music video assignment, it is recommended that when you add background music, you embed your sound rather than link it.

If you embed the sound file, the sound becomes embedded in the presentation, so the sound file does not need to be present for the sound to work. You will only need to turn in your PowerPoint file to your instructor.

When you embed a sound file, you can only use a .wav file.

Linking the Sound File

(This method of adding sound is not recommended for the English music video assignment. See Embedding the Sound File above.)

If you link the sound file, the sound will not work unless the sound file is present with the PowerPoint file. You will need to place the sound file in the same folder as your PowerPoint presentation file, link to the file in PowerPoint (Insert > Movies and Sounds > Sound from File), and turn in the entire folder to your instructor.

When you link the sound file, you can choose from many different formats including .wav, .mp3, .wma, and others. Mp3's work well for linking, since they are smaller files.

Use the TLMC tutorial: Adding Sound by Linking the Sound File

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The following tutorial is part of The ITM Help Collection, which has been developed by the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and is copyrighted by the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents. (Used with permission).

• Using Sounds and Video (PowerPoint 2007)
  
• Using Sounds and Video (PowerPoint 2003)

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In PowerPoint, you can record your voice, save it as a sound file, and link or embed the sound file to use as a voice over for one or more slides in your slide show.

You can record your voice in PowerPoint or you can use Audacity (free audio capture and edit software). Use the software/equipment and get help at the TLMC (IACC 150C). Use these tutorials for step by step instructions:

• Recording Narration in PowerPoint
• Recording Narration in Audacity

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