Registering Copyright for Musical Composition and Performance
To be legally protected, a music composition must be in a tangible format, for example, written as a score or recorded on a tape or disk. Protection begins at creation, but is greatly strengthened through registration of the work at the U.S. Copyright Office of the Library of Congress. Information circulars are available online; of particular interest to composers are:
- Circular 1 - Copyright Basics
- Circular 50 - Musical Compositions
- Circular 56 - Copyright for Sound Recordings
- Circular 56a - Copyright Registration of Musical Compositions
Copyright forms can be downloaded from the Internet or paper copies can be obtained from the Government and Business Department at the Main Library (513-369-6971).
Additional helpful information and links may be found at the Copyright Resource Center of the Music Publishers' Association and the Music Copyright Pages of the University of Washington.
Licensing and Marketing Musical Compositions
Many licensing and performance agreements are handled through ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, and the Harry Fox Agency. More information and additional links are in the Library's Music section of Sites by Subject.
Practical advice on the music business, including licensing and marketing, is offered in many books at the Library. To find these titles in the Library Catalog, use these selected subject headings:
- Band musicians - Legal status
- Copyright - Music - United States
- Copyright licenses
- Copyright - Performing Rights
- Music - Law and legislation - United States
- Music Trade - United States
- Performing Arts - Law and legislation
The Art and Music Department has compiled a list of helpful books in its brochure, Making It in the Music Business, also available in paper through the department at 513-369-6955.
Music Copyright in the News
Musical compositions have always been protected by copyright, but this arm of the law has been stretched by recent cases. The most famous litigation is the Napster case, in which A&M Music argued against the right of Napster to permit unauthorized downloading of music files.
Full information on court cases related to music copyright, including the Napster case (USPQ2nd 57:1729), is published weekly in the United States Patents Quarterly, available in the Government and Business Department.
