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A Couple Of Questions For A Varied Collection


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Hi everyone!

I'll get right to it. I am looking at registering copyright for a collection of 20-some pieces.

 

1. Some are microtonal, and the notation I used when composing them is my own creation, though not completely unintuitive. Can I just submit them as audio, or should I print out the score, non-traditional as it is? It's basically a grid with colored dots representing notes. Here is an animated version of one:


I could alternatively, fairly simply, turn these pieces into very precise but not very easy to read lists of frequencies, Csound-style or something like it.

 

2. One song no longer exists in any form except a microtonal recording created with weird synthesis, all sounds created by manipulated human voices reading Kafka's Metamorphosis in German, not from a translation. I believe that Kafka's original text must be public domain by now, but I'll have to check. I have no other form left than the audio, but the words are not mine.

 

3. One is a traditional American folk tune, 'Fire on the Mountain', to which I wrote my own silly square-dance words. Should I simply register the words? But then can I register as music, or would it be under literature? Maybe the simplest would be to write my own new music to go with it...

4. One song is co-authored by a friend.

 

5. The clearest form of most of the pieces is traditional scores, some with words and some without. I don't have audio for all of them. The FAQ I read says the collection can be either written or audio, but can it be mixed or do I have to register one audio and one written collection?

Thanks in advance for any guidance!

 

-Chuckk

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi, Chuckk.

 

Once a song has been recorded with lyrics and music together. The song legally belongs to both you and your co-writer. It is not a situation where you own the music and the lyricist owns the words.

 

There is no need to submit a score. Audio is sufficient. If it has lyrics, though, a lyric sheet would be submitted. If there are unique chords, you can include the chords on the lyric sheet.

 

If you submit a collection, the authorship has to be the same for everything submitted in that collection. As an added note on collections, if you get a bite on a song, it is recommended you do an individual copyright registration on the song of interest.

 

As for the public domain material, that is an area I'm not familiar with enough to say too much on. You can call the copyright office at

(202) 707-3000. Make sure it is a time when you have nothing else planned as you will be on hold for awhile. Morning is the best time to call.

 

*NOTE* I've responded to the best of my ability and am not associated with the Copyright Office or a legal expert. Just offering information based on my own personal experiences.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Cheryl

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  • 4 weeks later...

As far as I know, "the official registered copies" are what the Federal Judge is going to look at when (s)he is considering whether to rule that infringement has occurred.  Therefore, I think they must be usable in that context.  An audio recording, in the case of your microtonal songs; a printed lyrics sheet of the square-dance words to a folk song; a lead-sheet if you have one (i.e. when you have no audio); a mixture of all three.  Your non-traditional schema (very interesting though it looks to be!) probably wouldn't be "playable" hence particularly useful.  So long as they are all usable, officially registered copies that will serve to identify "the claim" in case of an action alleging infringement.

 

Your lyrics to "Fire on the Mountain" would be the (only) substance of that particular claim.  You're asserting your rights to the lyric, regardless of what music (if any) it may be set to.  Certainly you can mention that it's intended to be set to "Fire," but you should also explicitly mention that you are making no proprietary claims with regard to "Fire."

 

If your co-writer friend wants to be a co-claimant on one particular piece (or a separate group of pieces), guess you'll be spending $70 instead of $35 because you'll be filing two claims:  one for each group.

 

Separately ... I'd like to know more about your microtonal schemas and whatever software tool it is that you're using to create them.  (Perhaps this is not the right thread, however.)  Your music sounds very interesting.  A topic for a different forum space, yes, but one that I'd like to pursue.   :)

Edited by MikeRobinson
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