Music for graduation videos and senior slideshows

Tracks for graduation videos

• Under the first photos from the early school years

  Bright Future Piano Corporate · 1:30 · Corporate · Inspiring · 118 BPM

• For the cap toss and the hugs after the ceremony

  Class Slideshow Piano And Guitar · 2:30 · Pop · Inspiring · 118 BPM

• A fast class montage of friends, trips and games

  Uplifting Synth Rock · 3:34 · Rock · Energetic · 125 BPM

• Behind a speech or a message to the graduating class

  Dreamy Anime Pads · 0:30 · Ambient · Calm

• To end on the future with a wide, proud build

  Melancholic Neoclassical Sweep · 3:32 · Cinematic · Emotional · 75 BPM

Library tracks are free for personal use. Commercial use needs Pro or above. More tracks like these in the music library

The kinds of graduation video

Graduation videos come in a few familiar shapes. The senior slideshow tells one student’s story from their first school photo to their last day. The class video collects moments from a whole year group, often shown at a ceremony, prom or yearbook launch. The ceremony recap condenses the day itself: robes, the procession, names being called, the cap toss and the photos afterwards. And many families make a short reel for social media the same evening.

Each of these needs a different musical shape. A slideshow wants warmth and a slow build. A class montage wants energy and a beat to cut on. A ceremony recap wants dignity first and celebration later. Deciding which one you are making, before you choose music, saves a lot of editing later.

Pacing a senior slideshow

Put the photos in order from youngest to oldest and give each one three to five seconds. Baby photos and early school pictures can move a little faster, because they are recognizable at a glance; group photos from the last year need more time, since every friend in the room will look for themselves. A three minute slideshow holds about fifty photos at that pace.

Let the music start gently and grow as the photos approach the present day. A turn in the music, such as drums entering or strings widening, is a natural place to move from childhood to the teenage years. Save the strongest image, often the graduation portrait or a photo in cap and gown, for the final phrase, and hold it until the music resolves.

• Opening: one early photo with the student’s name, music soft and simple.
• Middle: school years in order, steady rhythm, photo changes on the beat.
• Final third: the last year, friends and the graduation portrait, music at its fullest.

Editing the ceremony itself

Ceremony footage is long, and most of it is people walking or sitting. For a recap, keep only the moments that matter: the procession, a line or two from a speech, the student’s name being called, the walk across the stage, the handshake, the cap toss and the celebrations outside. Two to three minutes is plenty for family; sixty seconds is plenty for social media.

Keep the real sound for the name being called and the cheer that follows. Those few seconds are the heart of the video, and music playing over them takes something away. The speech setting on the create page keeps dialogue in your video while the music around it is replaced, so speeches and names stay clear. Let the music rise as the caps go into the air, which is the natural peak of almost every graduation video.

Class videos and montages

Class videos have far more people and far more footage than a single student’s slideshow. Group the clips by theme, such as sports, trips, classrooms, performances and the last day, and give each group its own short section with a slight change in the music. Upbeat indie pop or light rock at 115 to 130 BPM suits these montages, with cuts every one to two seconds during the busiest sections.

Make sure everyone appears at least once if the video will be shown to the whole year. It is worth keeping a checklist of names. A slower section near the end, with photos of the whole class together, gives the video a moment to breathe before a final upbeat burst and the class year on screen.

The social reel on graduation night

The short video posted the same evening is often the most watched of all. It needs to grab attention in the first second, so open on the cap toss, a hug or a proud face rather than the empty hall. Fifteen to forty five seconds is plenty, cut fast, in vertical format. A punchy instrumental that starts on the beat, with no slow introduction, suits this kind of reel.

Pick five to eight of the best moments and cut them in time with the music: the walk, the handshake, the diploma, the family photo, the friends, the caps in the air. End on a single strong image with the graduate’s name or the class year. Generate music for the reel separately from the long version, because the short cut reaches its peak within seconds and needs a different shape.

Choosing the mood

Graduation sits between nostalgia and excitement, and the best music carries both. Piano and acoustic guitar bring warmth for the looking back; strings, drums and brighter chords bring the sense of moving forward. Pure sadness feels wrong for a celebration, and pure party music can feel shallow under photos of a whole childhood.

University graduations often suit a more cinematic sound than high school ones, while kindergarten and primary school graduations suit playful, bright music with simple melodies. If the video will be played at the ceremony, it is a good idea to check with the school whether there are any rules about music or about showing students who have not given permission to appear.

Length and the big screen

Videos shown at a ceremony or prom should usually be three to five minutes; longer than that and a large room starts to talk. Social reels should be under a minute and should start with a strong moment rather than a slow introduction. If you need both, cut the short version from the long one and generate music for each, because the short version needs to reach its big moment much sooner.

Before the event, play the video on the screen and speakers it will be shown on. Halls and gyms echo, so music that sounded balanced on a laptop can become muddy. The music has its own volume control before you export, and slightly quieter is almost always better in a large room.

How to make music for graduation videos

1. 1

   Cut the graduation video

   Put together the slideshow, class montage or ceremony recap and export it from your editor.

2. 2

   Pick a graduation preset

   Choose Senior slideshow, Ceremony recap, Class montage or What comes next, or describe your class and school in your own words.

3. 3

   Generate and export

   Generate on the create page, where the credit cost is shown before anything runs, then pick the version that peaks on the cap toss.

Questions before you start

Music for other kinds of video