music-editing-best-practices

name	music-editing-best-practices
description	Use when planning, generating, reviewing, or improving video edits that cut to music, beats, rhythm, stems, or a Music Maps `music.map` file. Applies to HyperFrames/social promo edits, music-driven montages, beat-synced animation, title/CTA timing, safe text placement, loop selection, and critique of whether an edit follows music-editing best practices without becoming mechanically beat-cut.

Music Editing Best Practices

Use this skill to turn a music.map into creative editing decisions. The map is not an edit decision list; treat it as musical structure plus editorial affordances.

Core Rule

Edit for story, clarity, and impact first. Use the music to reinforce those choices. Never cut every beat just because beat times exist.

Music Map Workflow

1. Read maps/index.json and choose a track whose use_cases, BPM, and mood fit the video.
2. Open the track's music.map.
3. For 6s, 10s, 15s, 20s, 25s, or 30s promos, start with edit_director.edit_regions.
4. For freer edits, inspect timeline.regions and edit_director.phrases.
5. Set data-media-start to the selected region's start.
6. Treat local_beats and local_cues as composition-local timing.
7. Use safe_text_windows, hold_zones, and loop_candidates before inventing your own timing.

Timing Choices

• Use downbeat for major changes: scene reset, title reveal, identity reveal, drop, CTA, logo.
• Use phrase_start for story blocks: hook, setup, reveal, lineup/proof, logistics, CTA.
• Use impact for action hits, speed ramps, flashes, and hard transitions.
• Use pre_hit when the new image should land with extra punch on the musical hit.
• Use post_hit for reaction, aftermath, comedy, looseness, or emotional delay.
• Use offbeat sparingly for glitches, inserts, roughness, syncopation, or surprise.
• Use final_hit for CTA, logo, end card, or loop return.
• Use vocal_entry when a lyric/person/title moment should lead the edit.

Text And Readability

Use safe_text_windows for date, venue, lineup, ticket status, sponsor, and CTA text. Avoid placing small or important text immediately after a hard cut unless the cut itself is the text reveal.

If the video needs voiceover or dense text, prefer regions tagged low_vocal, voiceover_friendly, or cta_friendly.

Holding Is Editing

Use hold_zones to protect:

• vocal-forward moments
• atmospheric intros
• low-energy tension
• final ringouts
• important readable text
• emotional or cinematic beats

Holding through a beat is often stronger than cutting on it.

Looping

For social loops, prefer edit_director.loop_candidates. Make the final visual frame motivate the return to the first frame with a match cut, motion continuation, light flash, camera move, or repeated shape.

Do not choose a loop solely because it has a fixed duration. Prefer bar- or phrase-aligned loop candidates with compatible visual start/end states.

Cut Density

Match cut density to the music and the message:

• high energy + rhythm dense: faster cuts, 1-2 beat shots, strong motion accents
• medium energy: 2-4 beat shots, readable title/logistics pacing
• low energy or high vocal: fewer cuts, longer holds, atmosphere, slow motion

Vary shot length. A repeated beat-cut pattern becomes predictable quickly.

Review Checklist

Before finalizing a music-driven edit, check:

• Does the first 1-2 seconds create a hook?
• Do major visual changes land on downbeats or phrase starts?
• Are pre_hit cuts used for punch, not everywhere?
• Are offbeat cuts rare and intentional?
• Is readable information placed in safe text windows?
• Are vocal/atmospheric moments protected with holds?
• Does the CTA or final image land on a strong cue?
• If looping, does the end visually motivate the restart?
• Is the edit serving the message, not just the beat grid?