If you want to make your PowerPoint presentation more interesting, try adding background music. PowerPoint allows you to play any MP3 or WAV file in the background. However, if you're using an older version of PowerPoint, you'll need to tinker with the program first. Also, if you want to play several songs at once, it is recommended that you combine all of them into one file first.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Playing a Single Song
Step 1. Open the slide you want to add a song to
If you want the song to play when the presentation starts, select the first slide.
- If you are using Office 2007 or 2003, see the bottom of this article.
- If you want to play multiple songs in a presentation, you can try sorting them by placing each song on a different slide. However, it will be easier and more convenient if you combine all the songs you want to play in one file. To do so, read the next section.
Step 2. Click the Insert tab
You can insert MP3 and WAV files.
- If you want to use a song from iTunes, you must first convert the song to MP3. Right-click on the song you want to use, then select "Create MP3 Version". For more information, read this guide.
- The size of the WAV file can be large enough to make it difficult for you to split the PowerPoint file. Therefore, it is recommended that you convert the WAV file to MP3, either by importing the WAV file into iTunes or using an online conversion site. For more information, read this guide.
Step 3. In the "Media" group, select "Audio", then click the "Audio from My PC" option
Note: The "Online Audio" option is no longer available for you. Therefore, if you want to play a song from the internet, you must first download the song to your computer
Step 4. Select the song file you want to play
You can select any MP3 or WAV file from your computer or network drive.
Step 5. Choose whether you want the music to start automatically, or to start after you click the button
PowerPoint provides two options for starting music playback: automatic in the background and manual. If you select the manual option, the music will play after you click the button. Select one of the following two settings to quickly set music playback options:
- If you want the music to start automatically and play in the background during your presentation, select the "Play in Background" option on the Playback tab. After selecting this option, the music will play automatically, and continues even after the slides change. After the music is finished, the music will continue to play back. With this option, the sound button will not appear in the presentation. Music will play when the slide is opened.
- If you want the music to play after pressing the button, select "No Style" in the "Playback" tab. The music will play once you click the audio button. You can change the appearance of the button by clicking the "Format" tab. In this tab, you can design buttons or import images to use as buttons.
Step 6. Perform basic edits to the audio file
PowerPoint provides simple sound editing tools. With these tools, you can change the music volume, playback starting point, fade-in and fade-out effects, and more. If you haven't selected an audio, click it to open the "Playback" tab.
- Add a marker to the audio track. When you hover over the audio, you'll see a timeline. Select a point on the line, then click "Add Bookmark" to create a clickable bookmark. The marker will refer to the point in time you specify.
- Click the "Trim Audio" button to trim the unnecessary parts of the song. This function is useful if the song you are using is too long, or if you only need a certain part of the audio file. Use the sliders in the "Trim Audio" window to select the start and end points of the song.
- Use the "Fade Duration" option to set the fade-in and fade-out effects. The longer the duration of the effect, the smoother the effect.
- Use the Volume buttons to adjust the overall volume of the song. Make sure you test the audio before your presentation so your viewers won't be surprised.
Step 7. Share the presentation
PowerPoint 2007 and later will include MP3 files in the presentation. This way, you can share your presentation without needing to provide a separate music file. However, keep in mind that the size of the MP3 file will affect the size of the presentation.
If your presentation is under 20 MB, you can send it as an email attachment. However, if your presentation size is large, consider sharing your presentation via a service like Google Drive or Dropbox
Method 2 of 3: Playing Multiple Songs
Step 1. Understand the process for playing multiple songs
You can try splitting the music files in your presentation so that the music transitions smoothly. However, if you make changes to your presentation, the song transitions might sound weird, or the audience might hear a long silence. If you want to include constant background music for a long presentation, it may be easier to combine all the background music into one file and set the file to play at the beginning of the presentation.
Step 2. Download Audacity for free from sourceforge.net/projects/audacity/, then install the program
This open source audio editing program allows you to quickly combine music files.
Step 3. Open the song you want to merge
Click "File", then select "Open…". If all the songs you want are in one folder, press Ctrl and select all the songs you want to include to open them all at once.
Step 4. Open a window showing the second track
In this guide, you will add each track of a song to the end of the first track.
Step 5. Press Ctrl + A to select the whole song
Step 6. Press Ctrl + C to copy the whole song
Step 7. Open the window showing the first track, then drag the cursor to the end of the song
Step 8. Press Ctrl + V to paste the copied song to the end of the first song
Step 9. Repeat the above steps to add more songs to the track
Step 10. Cut out the unnecessary blanks
Look at the sound graph to see when the sound is playing, and when the blank occurs. You may see blank sections after adding a track, which you can remove before using the track in PowerPoint.
- Click and drag an empty part of the track. Make sure you don't remove the pauses between songs as doing so can make the song sound weird. It is also recommended that you allow 1-2 seconds of pause between songs.
- Click "Cut" at the top of the window to discard the part you selected.
Step 11. Save the songs you have merged
After merging songs, you must save the songs as MP3s so that PowerPoint can recognize them.
- Click "File", then select "Export Audio".
- Select the "MP3 Files" option in the "Save as type" column.
- Give the file a name, and save it somewhere easy to find. Make sure you give the file a clear name, so you can tell that it's a combined file of several songs.
- Click Save, then click OK (unless you want to edit the information in the MP3 tag).
- Wait until the export process is complete. Audacity may take a few minutes to save your MP3 file.
Step 12. Insert an MP3 file into PowerPoint by following the first step in this article
Don't forget to set PowerPoint to play songs in the background automatically.
Method 3 of 3: Using PowerPoint 2007 and 2003
Step 1. Open the slide you want to insert the song into
If you want the song to start when the presentation starts, go to the first slide. Or, if you want the song to play in a specific part of the presentation, open the slide you want.
Step 2. Click the "Insert" tab, then select "Sounds > Sound from File"
You will be able to select WAV files or MP3 files.
- If you're using Office 2003, click the Insert menu, and select "Movies and Sounds > Sound from File".
- Since PowerPoint 2003 and 2007 cannot include MP3 files in presentations, it is recommended that you create a new folder on your computer, and place the presentation files and MP3s in that folder.
- You can include a WAV file in your presentation, but the file size of the presentation will swell. Therefore, to add music, it is recommended that you link an MP3 file.
Step 3. Choose when the song plays
On the "Sound" tab, you can select "Automatically" or "When Clicked" in the "Play Sound" menu.
If you set the song to autoplay, check the "Hide During Show" button to hide the audio button
Step 4. Right-click the audio object, then select "Custom Animation"
Generally, the song will stop after you change slides. By creating animations, you can "force" the music to play longer.
Step 5. Click the "Multimedia Settings" tab, then select the "Continue slide show" option
Step 6. Click "After", then select the slide where the music stops
Set this option to the last slide in the presentation to play music until the presentation is complete. When finished, click "OK".
Step 7. Pack the presentation
Because the music files will not "stick" to the presentation, you must package the presentation and audio files via the "Package for CD" option. This way, you can easily share your presentation files with others.>
- Click the Office button, select "Publish", then click "Package for CD".
- Enter the name of the folder you want to create in the "Name the CD" box.
- Click "Options", and make sure the "Include linked files" option is checked.
- Click "Copy to folder". The computer will create a new folder containing your presentation and music files. In this folder, there is also a PowerPoint player, which will make it easy for the recipient to play the presentation even without Microsoft Office.
