how the final word on how copyright in editing really works - from a former early music scholar re: Times article

Henry Gomersall wrote:

>On Mon, 2004-07-05 at 12:51, Dan Ackroyd wrote:
>  
>
>>He said that without the efforts of specialists such as himself, many pieces
>>of early music would be lost. Complete scores of work by composers such as
>>Lalande (1657-1726), principal court composer to Louis XIV and Louis XV,
>>often no longer exist and it takes considerable research to piece together
>>surviving notations, fill in missing sections, and eventually produce music
>>as close to the original as feasible."
>>    
>>
as i understand it, the copyright of the /editing/ remains with the 
editor, the copyright in the music remains with the /composer/.

this is the way it has always worked, as i've witnessed with a former 
flatmate who set up a company editing out-of-copyright choral works. he 
copyrights his editing - as it is /his/ work. another editor may phrase 
it differently. but he has no copyright over the notes, or the original 
manuscript. that remains either in copyright, or released into the 
public domain.

i've watched the trouble he went to in order to edit early manuscripts 
(some of which have missing chunks and have to be reconstructed). its a 
labour of love.

those of you in Cambridge, pay a visit to Christopher Hogwood and ask 
him about the law regarding this matter, and how he reconstructed 
various pieces that would otherwise be lost.

mC~



-- 
Lose yourself in the music, the moment, you own it, 
you better never let it go,
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow 
this opportunity comes once in a lifetime.

-- Eminem: from 8 Mile

www.iriXx.org
www.copyleftmedia.org.uk