Music is part of how many yoga teachers create atmosphere and shape the energy of a class.  A carefully curated playlist can build momentum in a vinyasa class, shape the specific energetic vibe in a yin yoga class, and ease the transition into savasana.  For many teachers, selecting music feels as integral to class preparation as sequencing poses.

However, what most teachers do not realise is that playing music in a yoga class is not the same, legally, as listening to music at home.  The moment music is played in a commercial setting – a studio, a rented space, a corporate office, even an outdoor class that students pay to attend – different rules apply.

This post provides a practical overview of what those rules are in Singapore and what options are available for teachers who want to use music legally in public classes.

Personal use versus commercial use

Streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube are licensed for personal use only.  Their terms of service permit individual listening – at home, in your car or in public through headphones – but not playback in public and/or for commercial purposes.  Playing music streamed from a personal Spotify account through a studio’s speakers during a paid yoga class may breach those terms of service.

This distinction catches many teachers by surprise.  The platform looks the same, the music sounds the same, and the act of pressing play feels identical whether you are at home or in a studio.  But the legal framework treats these situations differently because of who is listening and in what context.  Personal use means private listening.  Playing music to a room of paying students in a commercial setting is a public performance, and public performance of copyrighted recorded music generally requires clearance from two separate collective management organisations (CMOs): a COMPASS licence for the underlying musical work and lyrics, and, since the Copyright Act 2021, an MRSS licence for the sound recording itself.

Public performance licences: COMPASS and MRSS

In Singapore, two collective management organisations (CMOs) license the public performance of recorded music: COMPASS and MRSS.  Each administers a different copyright interest in the same recording, and a studio playing recorded music may need licences from both.

COMPASS, also known as the Composers and Authors Society of Singapore, collects licence fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers, and distributes those fees as royalties.  A COMPASS licence covers the public performance of the underlying musical work and lyrics.

MRSS, or Music Rights (Singapore) Public Limited, is the CMO established to collect music and music video copyrights on behalf of its members, who are record labels and music producers.  Ever since the Copyright Act 2021 introduced a right of equitable remuneration for the public performance of sound recordings, MRSS has administered a separate public performance licence for the sound recording itself — the specific recorded track being played — as distinct from the underlying composition.

Both a COMPASS licence and an MRSS licence cover the playing of background music in commercial settings, including fitness and yoga studios.  The fees payable under each depend on factors such as the size of the space and the type of use.  For a small yoga studio playing background music during classes, the annual fees are generally modest under both.

In practice, it is usually the studio, not the individual teacher, that holds these licences, since they attach to the premises where music is played.  However, teachers should be aware of several things.  First, not all studios hold both licences, and playing recorded music in a studio missing either one means the music is being performed publicly without full authorisation.  Second, if you teach in settings outside a licensed studio — at a corporate office, in a rented community space, or at an outdoor event — the licences held by your regular studio do not follow you.  The venue or the organiser of the event would need its own licences, or you would need to make alternative arrangements.  Third, because COMPASS and MRSS licence different rights, holding one does not substitute for the other; a studio can hold a COMPASS licence without an MRSS licence, or vice versa, and still fall short of full coverage.

Royalty-free and licensed music libraries

An increasingly popular alternative is to use royalty-free or subscription-based music libraries that provide tracks specifically cleared for commercial use.  These services can allow teachers to build playlists legally without needing to hold a separate COMPASS or MRSS licence — but only if the library’s clearance genuinely covers both the underlying composition and the sound recording.  Not every service marketed as ‘royalty-free’ clears both rights, so it is worth checking the licence terms rather than assuming full coverage from the label alone.

Royalty-free does not mean the music is free of charge – it means that once you have paid for access (usually through a subscription or one-off purchase), you do not owe additional royalties each time the music is played.  Several platforms now cater specifically to yoga and wellness professionals, offering ambient, instrumental, and nature-based tracks designed for class use.

For teachers who lead online classes, royalty-free libraries are particularly important.  Streaming or recording a class that includes copyrighted music introduces additional complexity beyond public performance rights.  If you publish online or livestream a class with background music that is copyrighted, platforms like Zoom or Facebook may flag or mute the audio due to automated copyright detection systems.  If you record and distribute the class – for example, as part of a paid on-demand library – you may need synchronisation rights, which go beyond what a standard COMPASS licence covers.

Royalty-free libraries typically include streaming and recording rights within their licence terms, making them the simpler and safer option for online teaching.

Sharing playlists with students

Teachers often share playlists with students after class, and this is generally fine if it is done within the platform’s own sharing mechanisms.  Linking to a publicly available Spotify or YouTube playlist is acceptable – because you are directing students to content hosted on a licensed platform, and they will access it through their own personal accounts.

What is not acceptable is downloading tracks and distributing them directly – sending audio files via WhatsApp, uploading them to a shared drive, or embedding them in course materials.  This constitutes unauthorised distribution of copyrighted material, regardless of whether there is a commercial transaction underpinning the distribution.

Recorded mantras, chants, and cultural works

Special care is needed when using recorded mantras, chants, or cultural works in class.  These are subject to copyright like any other musical recording.

A recording of a kirtan session, a commercially produced mantra album, or a curated collection of Tibetan singing bowl sounds is protected by copyright as a sound recording in its own right, separately from whatever copyright may or may not exist in the underlying chant or composition.  Even where the chant itself is traditional or in the public domain, playing the recording during a paid class is a public performance of that sound recording, which may require an MRSS licence in addition to any COMPASS clearance needed for the underlying work.

Live music is treated differently.  If a teacher leads chanting, plays a singing bowl, or uses a gong — performing the sounds herself rather than playing a recording — no licence is required from either COMPASS or MRSS, unless the teacher is performing a copyrighted composition written by someone else, in which case a COMPASS clearance may still apply.  MRSS’s right is specific to sound recordings, so it does not arise where nothing is being played back.  Original or traditional works performed live by the teacher are not otherwise subject to music licensing requirements.

What this means for you

The practical position for most yoga teachers in Singapore is straightforward.  If you play recorded music during in-person classes at a studio, check whether the studio holds both a COMPASS licence and an MRSS licence.

If it holds both, your standard class use is likely covered.  If the studio is missing either one, and if the studio requires as part of its internal policy that teachers play music in classes, the studio should obtain the missing licence, as the combined cost is modest relative to the legal and reputational risk of operating without full coverage.

If you teach outside a licensed studio, or if you teach online, consider using a royalty-free music library that covers public performance of both the underlying composition and the sound recording, as well as streaming or recording rights.  This avoids the need to navigate multiple licensing arrangements across two separate CMOs and gives you clear, documented permission to use the music across different teaching contexts.

And if music is not central to your teaching – for example, if your classes are conducted in silence – then none of this may be relevant to you at all.  Not every teacher needs to use music, and choosing not to use music is a perfectly valid decision that should carry no legal or professional risk whatsoever.

 

The information in this article is for general educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.  It should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional legal advice.  Laws and regulations may change, and the information provided may not reflect the most current legal developments.  For advice specific to your circumstances, please consult a qualified lawyer.  No solicitor-client relationship is created by reading this content.