Discussion:
What is the name of your state? Florida
Hey all: I am the frontman of a music group in Florida where I am the main songwriter. Normally when I write songs I will write vocals / lyrics (male and female), guitars, bass (midi), drums (midi), and keyboards. I will then distribute this recording out to the other members so that they can learn the lines.
When registering the songs I have run into a slight problem - there are members that have taken those lines and changed a note here or there (or they have taken the midi lines and played them on their actual instrument)and are now claiming that they should be considered a "partial writer". Now mind you, if a lyrical section has been modifed of course they get credit, or if there is a SIGNIFICANT new musical line that has been added I will make sure they get credit, but what we're talking about here is a NOTE here or there that has been changed. Should this consititute "writing credit" in a legal sense or even a moral sense? Please help...
Answer:
What is the name of your state? Florida
Hey all: I am the frontman of a music group in Florida where I am the main songwriter. Normally when I write songs I will write vocals / lyrics (male and female), guitars, bass (midi), drums (midi), and keyboards. I will then distribute this recording out to the other members so that they can learn the lines.
When registering the songs I have run into a slight problem - there are members that have taken those lines and changed a note here or there (or they have taken the midi lines and played them on their actual instrument)and are now claiming that they should be considered a "partial writer". Now mind you, if a lyrical section has been modifed of course they get credit, or if there is a SIGNIFICANT new musical line that has been added I will make sure they get credit, but what we're talking about here is a NOTE here or there that has been changed. Should this consititute "writing credit" in a legal sense or even a moral sense? Please help... Well, copyright law does not distinguish between different amounts of creative input -- there are numerous cases where a 1% contributor is entitled to 1/2 of the profits, even though the other contributor put in 99% of the work. That said, courts also recognize the concept of a "de minimus" issue, an issue so small that it's not worth it to the courts to bother to adjudicate it -- changing a single note would probably be one of these situations, where if it came to court, the court may very well find that the creative input was a "de minimus" input, and therefore not entitled to copyright ownership. The court could also rule that the change was not "creative," but merely a mechanical transposition or something, and therefore not copyright-worthy.
On the other hand, if the single-note change was a "key" change, maybe the changer IS entitled to a copyright. I guess the point here is that there is no cut-and-dried answer to your question. Maybe a better choice for you is to register the copyrights BEFORE you give them to the band to play, and then the band members can share in the copyright for the "sound recording."
Answer:
Thanks for the answer. When it comes to the "sound recording" of the song, each member will be entitled some portion of it since they did perform on the recording (we are a signed band with multiple recordings ready to be released), and it would be utterly ridiculous in my book for someones performance to not compensated for on a particular piece.
But yes, as for the parts in question from a writing standpoint, each person does "put their own feel to the piece", and when it is a significant change I am more than willing to make notation of it. But for instance when I write the lyrics / melody / timing of a vocal piece (being male), and a vocalist (being female) places what I;ve written into their register I dont truly see how that can be construed as being an active "songwriter", to me its more of a "part / performance perfector". Does that make sense?
Answer:
Thanks for the answer. When it comes to the "sound recording" of the song, each member will be entitled some portion of it since they did perform on the recording (we are a signed band with multiple recordings ready to be released), and it would be utterly ridiculous in my book for someones performance to not compensated for on a particular piece.
But yes, as for the parts in question from a writing standpoint, each person does "put their own feel to the piece", and when it is a significant change I am more than willing to make notation of it. But for instance when I write the lyrics / melody / timing of a vocal piece (being male), and a vocalist (being female) places what I;ve written into their register I dont truly see how that can be construed as being an active "songwriter", to me its more of a "part / performance perfector". Does that make sense? Don't get me wrong, I agree with you, especially on the idea of just shifting register -- that seems like the kind of "mechanical" change that wouldn't be a "creative" change necessary to vest rights in the copyright. It's just that there isn't a lot of cut-and-dried law here, so, while you are almost certainly in the right, it's not like there is a statute you can point to the justifies your position. You'll just need to take a stand, and do what you think is right -- if they want to take it to the next level, then you'll probably need a lawyer to go through all of the facts and details. But going forward, probably the best advice would be just to spell things out for people before they get it in their head that any little change is going to result in songwriting credits...
Answer:
Once again I appreciate the insight. Everyone in the group is being civil about this, it just touches a nerve when an individual feels that they have rights to "my creation" just because of minute changes. I appreciate their efforts in perfecting and even "enhancing" the lines which I wrote, but that does not mean that the lines in essence are significantly different, or different enough to warrant being called a "co-writer".
Now understand that I am all for "sharing the wealth" - meaning I am not out to screw anyone over when it comes to finances, but just as they are trying to make sure that their efforts are duly noted, I am also wanting to make sure that the creation, which I fostered from the very beginning and brought forth, does not become something where people pick and peck at it to try and "get their piece" and I am left with a share of writing credits that absolutely does not match up with the time and effort I put forth to bring the piece into existence. Make sense?