RE: Music Copyright

Couple of questions... 

 

Do you plan on printing their sheet music with your words attached, and
their sheet music is under copyright? You might have a problem there. You're
talking permission and probably paying them a fee to use their copyright
material. 

 

Do you plan on recording the song using their music, in it's entirety (not
just short samples mixed with other music) with your words? Ditto, you have
a problem, UNLESS you're making a parody song and are in the US or another
country that allows for this sort of parody. In that case, you're in the
clear. 

 

Is the sheet music out of copyright, but you're making some sort of
recording of yourself singing to a background recording of the music with
your words? You're still out of luck, because there are two separate
copyrights on music...the sheet music and individual recordings of the
music. Even with OOP sheet music, the individual recordings are still
protected by copyright, as a performance. If you have someone play it for
you/play it yourself, and the sheet music is out of copyright, you can sing
whatever lyrics you want to it.

 

Final question... Are you writing new words and just publishing the words
with a footnote like "This was written for the music to X song by Y
artist."? If so, you are in the clear personally, but anyone that wants to
RECORD or PERFORM it with your words has to get permission for the music to
match or write complimentary music to match (not as impossible as it
sounds...try listening to SCA artists that do things like sing a Medieval
dirge to the tune of Wimaweh/Mbube). Filk artists do that all the time, so
changing the music INTENDED for a piece isn't undoable.

 

Brenna

From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of William Creed
Sent: Saturday, June 16, 2012 11:11 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [ebook-community] Music Copyright

 

  

I have a question regarding copyright. I am in the midst of rewriting
someone else's song. I plan on using their music - and give them copyright
for it -but using my own words and copyrighted them seperately. What
problems do I run into legally on this. Do I need the music author's
permission, or can I do this as long as he gets royalties? WSC





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