Posted by Rick Denney on January 30, 2002 at 10:54:43:
In Reply to: Re: Copywright Information posted by B on January 29, 2002 at 23:06:23:
Sorry, you can't use copyrighted music without you or someone else paying royalties in public performance, in recordings, or in arrangements.
In public performance, the venue may pay fees to ASCAP and BMI to cover the royalties. Your CD producer may pay those fees for CD's, and your publisher may handle the royalties paid through Harry Fox (or directly to the copyright holder) for arrengements of copyrighted music. But someone has to pay for it to be legal.
If you want to arrange existing music, see who owns the copyright (look at the copyright notice) and call them on the phone. They'll tell you what you have to do to get permission to use it. Playing or copying existing recordings (which is the only activity affected by the P notice of copyright) is usually handled through ASCAP or BMI. Performance venues and radio stations pay fees to those organizations to handle that stuff on a blanket basis, but don't assume anything without checking. Transcribing music from a recording (which is controlled by the C-notice of copyright on the music performed on that recording) is just like arranging it from the original printed music (see above).
And you cannot assume that the music can be freely used just because no C or P notice appears. Placing these notices are optional, and do not affect fundamental copyrights. They DO affect who has to prove what in court, but you don't want to ever have to go to court in the first place. Assume that everything you are tempted to use is copyrighted, unless you are working from old, old music that is marked "urtext," or unless you have something in writing from the copyright holder granting you permission.
Rick "trying to be clear" Denney