Klarinet Archive - Posting 000887.txt from 1999/11

From: "Michael Bryant" <michael@-----.uk>
Subj: Re: [kl] Asking for Help from the list
Date: Tue, 23 Nov 1999 09:22:50 -0500

I am not in a position to do any dragon-slaying
but would like to. Librarians who do not know
the copyright laws of their country,
(the Berne Copyright Union of 1886,
or the Berne Convention in its latest revision)
but think they do, should, of course, be handled with all due courtesy.

My experiences have been absurd.

I once offered, pro bono publico, to make playable again
a 19th century edition of a chamber work by Onslow.
It was disintegrating, therefore unusable
and also out of print. This would necessitate copying it and adding
bar number. I was told that this was against the law!
What tosh! He died in 1852.
When later I wanted to play this work it proved easy
to find it elsewhere.

Publishers who produce unplayable editions
equipped with restless page turns are numerous. It is necessary
in these cases to perform from photocopied pages
or two copies of the same part side by side.

A well known publisher of wind music hissed into my ear that I should not
play a bassoon part on a bass clarinet without the (living) composer's
permission, even in a domestic situation. I can see that
it would be polite to ask, but it would not impinge upon his earnings?

Much worse than that, the case of the BBC music library willing
to lend to me on hire, for a substantial fee, some unpublished music by a
composer,
who found refuge in Britain before the second war, and died here in 1965,
only after I had obtained the consent to do so from the composer's family.
I explained that he had no living relatives, they had all perished in the
gas chambers.
In which case they cannot use it themselves!
It transpired that the BBC does not have the original, but only a copy,
and they failed to say so. I have since found the original manuscript
in a private collection.

Of course there are platant cases of abuse such as the police choir or band
that bought one copy and made so many more, but these are rarely in the
news

In my experience publishers do not look after composers' interests very
well.

Those, for whom the British rules of the game apply,
might care to take a look at "The Code of Fair Practice"
agreed between composers, publishers and users of printed music
produced by the Music Publishers' Association
Email mpa@-----.uk
at
3rd floor 18/20 York Buildings
London WC2N 6LU
Tel 0171 839 7779
Fax 0171 839 7776

Mike Bryant, who is feeling much better after that.

Mark wrote
Date: 23 November 1999 13:00
Subject: Re: [kl] Asking for Help from the list

>From: "Robert Reyes" <robert.reyes@-----.net>
>[snip]
>
>Robert,
>you're going to get a few messages, I'm sure.
>
>Since you are a music librarian, and copyright is a pretty complex matter,
>may I suggest the Music Librarians Internet site and the following
reference
>to assist in clearing up any copyright questions you may have:
>
>http://www.musiclibraryassoc.org/Copyright/copyhome.htm
>
>In general - the fair use clause limits you to unsing not more than 10% of
a
>piece for educational purposes. It is probably the most problematic area of
>copyright.
>
>Copying because the "powers that be" are "too cheap" to replace parts is
not
>covered under fair use :^) I guess those powers are just not interested in
>making any music, right?
>
>Cheers,
>Mark C.
>
>
>
>
>---------------------------------------------------------------------
>Unsubscribe from Klarinet, e-mail: klarinet-unsubscribe@-----.org
>Subscribe to the Digest: klarinet-digest-subscribe@-----.org
>Additional commands: klarinet-help@-----.org
>Other problems: klarinet-owner@-----.org
>

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Unsubscribe from Klarinet, e-mail: klarinet-unsubscribe@-----.org
Subscribe to the Digest: klarinet-digest-subscribe@-----.org
Additional commands: klarinet-help@-----.org
Other problems: klarinet-owner@-----.org