Copyright Information for Dulcimer Players
For many years I have enjoyed writing arrangements for dulcimer festival workshops, and have also self-published twelve books which contain over 300 arrangements of tunes that are in the public domain, including folk songs from around the world, hymns, and familiar classical melodies. Recently I decided to include some tunes that were not in the public domain in one of my books -- i.e. songs that were composed by someone else, and which are under copyright protection. As a result of my experience in dealing with the process involved in acquiring the license (permission) to use these copyright-protected songs, other dulcimer players have occasionally turned to me with questions related to the procedure, which I have always been happy to answer.
It has long been my belief that dulcimer folks genuinely want to do the right thing when it comes to arranging and distributing tabs of copyright-protected songs, but that they honestly don't have any idea, or have been misinformed, about what they can or cannot do. To that end, I decided it was time to put all the possible scenarios into one easy-to-understand format, and post it here on my website.
Ever the teacher, it is my goal to educate interested folks as to all the ins and outs related to copyright law.
I should add that I consulted an attorney who has had experience practicing copyright law, and who also happens to be an accomplished dulcimer player. He added some clarifying points to my initial information, and I am confident that the article below is accurate and will answer all your questions.
Carol Walker
But before we get into the nitty-gritty details, please take a look at the page below, which I include with every digital purchase. Richard Ash (Folkcraft Instruments) and others also include this or a similar page with their digital sales.
And now, the Nitty Gritty:
There are several different areas of copyright law that apply to the music world in general and that dulcimer players and teachers should keep in mind when using music created by others. These various areas should not be confused or mixed up with each other -- each has its own parameters and requirements:
1. Creating (and printing and distributing) dulcimer arrangements of copyright-protected material, including both lyrics and music
2. Performing a copyright-protected song in a public venue
3. Recording a copyright-protected song on a CD or digital download and/or posting to Youtube or other social media sites
CREATING ARRANGEMENTS
You can--
--create an arrangement of a copyright-protected song for your own personal use or amusement, and which you may play for your friends and family members, and which will NOT be shared in print or digital form. No permission is needed.
--create arrangements of songs already in the public domain, and freely print and distribute these at festivals.
You cannot--
--create an arrangement of a copyright-protected song, with the intention of either teaching it in a dulcimer festival or sharing it with others in any way (such as on a dulcimer forum) without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
--distribute this arrangement in a dulcimer festival workshop, dulcimer club meeting, jam session, or any other similar gathering as a printed handout without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee..
--distribute this arrangement via email or by ANY electronic or digital means to attendees at a festival workshop or through a dulcimer forum or chat group without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
--publish this arrangement in a book or as “sheet music” for sale without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
You also cannot print out and distribute copies of lyrics of a copyright-protected song without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
PERFORMING
You can--
--perform copyright-protected songs (“cover” songs) in a public venue (restaurant, hotel, club, festival, etc.) only IF the venue has paid the appropriate licensing fees to the copyright holder, which will likely be one or more of the three Performing Rights Organizations -- BMI, ASCAP, SESAC.
--perform songs that are already in the public domain and any of your own originals in any public venue, whether the venue is licensed or not.
You cannot--
--perform a copyrighted song in a public venue (restaurant, hotel, club, church, dulcimer festival, mall, etc.) that has NOT paid appropriate licensing fees -- you AND the venue can be fined.
RECORDING
You can--
--record songs that are already in the public domain and any of your own originals.
You cannot--
--record your arrangement of a copyright-protected song without first securing a license from the copyright holder and paying a fee.
PERMISSIONS & LICENSING (and fees)
Print Permission
First, determine who is the current copyright holder of the piece you want to arrange. You can generally locate this information on the bottom of the first page of the music. Next, contact Hal Leonard Corporation, who will guide you throughout the next steps of the entire process. (Hal Leonard is the exclusive print distributor for the majority of all print titles in the world. The rest are owned by a few smaller publishing houses, and also by the composer who has self-published.)
Note: Creating a dulcimer arrangement of a copyright-protected piece is considered making a “derivative work” -- i.e., you have “derived” your arrangement from the original piece owned by someone else.
If you intend to distribute your arrangement of a copyright-protected piece at a dulcimer festival, club meeting, jam session, etc., or share it with members of a dulcimer forum or chat group, either as a printed handout or via digital or electronic means (email, Dropbox, etc.) you must get written permission and pay any licensing fees.
Remember -- you do NOT need any kind of permission to arrange, perform, or record any song that is already in the public domain or your own originals.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I recently decided to find out exactly what the procedure would be if I wanted to teach one of my own arrangements of a copyright-protected song, and what it would cost. Click on this link to visit a companion page on which I share all my correspondence with Hal Leonard Corporation.
I think you'll find this very informative...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This website lists public domain songs -- it is reliable and easy to use: www.pdinfo.com
Hal Leonard’s website has a special copyright section:
www.Halleonard.com -- click on “Copyright” tab, and also read the FAQs posted there.
If you intend to publish your arrangement in a book you will likely be working with Hal Leonard, who will also collect a fee for themselves and the copyright holder. This fee is based on how many books you intend to print and what its retail sale price will be. They will also give you specific information that must be printed on the bottom of the first page of your arrangement.
If you have selected a piece that is not controlled by Hal Leonard, the permission and fees must be negotiated directly with the entity that owns the copyright.
Performing License
If you are performing a copyright-protected song in a venue which has paid the necessary licensing fees listed above, you have nothing more to worry about.
But if your venue does NOT have the necessary license, you can personally secure a one-time song-specific license (for a fee) from the same agencies listed above -- BMI, ASCAP, or SESAC.
Recording / Synchronization Licenses
If you plan to record your arrangement of a copyright-protected piece and produce a CD or other recording that contains this arrangement, you must get a license from Harry Fox Agency. Their fee is based on the number of copyright-protected songs on your CD and the number of copies you plan to produce.
If you plan to post your arrangement of a copyright-protected song on YouTube, you should acquire a synchronization license from BMI, ASCAP, or SESAC. You may need proof of that license should the copyright holder seek to mute, block, or monetize your use of the song, or should you wish to monetize your use of the song (i.e., by advertisements).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In general, any time you are working with any song that is protected by copyright, you are working with property that belongs to someone else, and you must be granted permission in writing, and pay a licensing fee for that privilege.
It is illegal to use another person’s copyright-protected song without acquiring their permission as described in the scenarios presented above. NONE of these situations constitutes “fair use.” Moreover, the fact that a dulcimer club or festival may have obtained "non-profit" status likely has no bearing on your use of an arrangement of copyright-protected material.
Ask yourself this question: Why would I want to avoid compensating the composer (or other owner) for a piece of music that I enjoy enough to want to arrange and share with others?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FAIR USE
What exactly constitutes “fair use?”
"Fair use" is a doctrine that allows for limited use of copyright-protected material without first obtaining the permission from the copyright holder for certain purposes, such as criticism, parody, news reporting, research, scholarship, and teaching. To determine whether the "fair use" doctrine will allow you to make use of copyright-protected material without a license, you must consider each of the following four guidelines:
“In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include--
(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;”
As a dulcimer arranger and/or dulcimer workshop leader who may be profiting from teaching a song, it is NOT fair use for you to teach and distribute copies of your arrangement of a copyright-protected piece in a workshop unless you have been granted permission in writing from the copyright holder. (This is even true when you have created a "derivative work" from someone else's work, and every instance of that requires permission. See #2 below.) Note that this applies in any setting, including a small non-profit festival.
“(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;”
If you’ve written a dulcimer arrangement of a copyright-protected work, you’ve created a “derivative work” -- you’ve “derived” a completely new work from a copyright-protected song. This requires permission if you have any intention of sharing it at a dulcimer festival.
“(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole;”
This applies if you want to make (and distribute) a photocopy of a short segment of the original copyright-protected work to demonstrate or illustrate a point related to your workshop topic -- you may do so as long as it is less than 10% of the entire work. You must cite and include the copyright information on the bottom of the page. You may NOT copy an entire piece, even if it is intended for “educational purposes” without getting written permission.
“(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.”
A dulcimer player who has your unpermitted and illegal arrangement of another person’s copyright-protected work would have no need to purchase the original, thus depriving the composer of potential income that would have been generated by a direct purchase of the original from the composer/publisher. Similarly, the original composer may have the desire (and ability) to create his own dulcimer arrangement of his own composition -- he created the song, he owns the song, and therefore has 100% control over what happens to it after he publishes it. He may be very happy to have you share his music in this unique way, but he must first grant written permission (either directly or through his publisher), and is also entitled to receive a customary fee.
And here’s a very important caveat: The original composer (or copyright holder) now owns your arrangement, and the copyright stamp at the bottom of the first page must reflect that.
Here’s an actual example that I was required to print in one of my books that included my dulcimer arrangement of “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’,” a song composed by Richard Rodgers, initially published by Williamson Music, and then taken over by Hal Leonard Corporation. Rodgers died many years ago, but his publishing company still holds -- and protects -- the original copyright.
1. Creating (and printing and distributing) dulcimer arrangements of copyright-protected material, including both lyrics and music
2. Performing a copyright-protected song in a public venue
3. Recording a copyright-protected song on a CD or digital download and/or posting to Youtube or other social media sites
CREATING ARRANGEMENTS
You can--
--create an arrangement of a copyright-protected song for your own personal use or amusement, and which you may play for your friends and family members, and which will NOT be shared in print or digital form. No permission is needed.
--create arrangements of songs already in the public domain, and freely print and distribute these at festivals.
You cannot--
--create an arrangement of a copyright-protected song, with the intention of either teaching it in a dulcimer festival or sharing it with others in any way (such as on a dulcimer forum) without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
--distribute this arrangement in a dulcimer festival workshop, dulcimer club meeting, jam session, or any other similar gathering as a printed handout without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee..
--distribute this arrangement via email or by ANY electronic or digital means to attendees at a festival workshop or through a dulcimer forum or chat group without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
--publish this arrangement in a book or as “sheet music” for sale without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
You also cannot print out and distribute copies of lyrics of a copyright-protected song without first getting permission in writing and paying a licensing fee.
PERFORMING
You can--
--perform copyright-protected songs (“cover” songs) in a public venue (restaurant, hotel, club, festival, etc.) only IF the venue has paid the appropriate licensing fees to the copyright holder, which will likely be one or more of the three Performing Rights Organizations -- BMI, ASCAP, SESAC.
--perform songs that are already in the public domain and any of your own originals in any public venue, whether the venue is licensed or not.
You cannot--
--perform a copyrighted song in a public venue (restaurant, hotel, club, church, dulcimer festival, mall, etc.) that has NOT paid appropriate licensing fees -- you AND the venue can be fined.
RECORDING
You can--
--record songs that are already in the public domain and any of your own originals.
You cannot--
--record your arrangement of a copyright-protected song without first securing a license from the copyright holder and paying a fee.
PERMISSIONS & LICENSING (and fees)
Print Permission
First, determine who is the current copyright holder of the piece you want to arrange. You can generally locate this information on the bottom of the first page of the music. Next, contact Hal Leonard Corporation, who will guide you throughout the next steps of the entire process. (Hal Leonard is the exclusive print distributor for the majority of all print titles in the world. The rest are owned by a few smaller publishing houses, and also by the composer who has self-published.)
Note: Creating a dulcimer arrangement of a copyright-protected piece is considered making a “derivative work” -- i.e., you have “derived” your arrangement from the original piece owned by someone else.
If you intend to distribute your arrangement of a copyright-protected piece at a dulcimer festival, club meeting, jam session, etc., or share it with members of a dulcimer forum or chat group, either as a printed handout or via digital or electronic means (email, Dropbox, etc.) you must get written permission and pay any licensing fees.
Remember -- you do NOT need any kind of permission to arrange, perform, or record any song that is already in the public domain or your own originals.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I recently decided to find out exactly what the procedure would be if I wanted to teach one of my own arrangements of a copyright-protected song, and what it would cost. Click on this link to visit a companion page on which I share all my correspondence with Hal Leonard Corporation.
I think you'll find this very informative...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This website lists public domain songs -- it is reliable and easy to use: www.pdinfo.com
Hal Leonard’s website has a special copyright section:
www.Halleonard.com -- click on “Copyright” tab, and also read the FAQs posted there.
If you intend to publish your arrangement in a book you will likely be working with Hal Leonard, who will also collect a fee for themselves and the copyright holder. This fee is based on how many books you intend to print and what its retail sale price will be. They will also give you specific information that must be printed on the bottom of the first page of your arrangement.
If you have selected a piece that is not controlled by Hal Leonard, the permission and fees must be negotiated directly with the entity that owns the copyright.
Performing License
If you are performing a copyright-protected song in a venue which has paid the necessary licensing fees listed above, you have nothing more to worry about.
But if your venue does NOT have the necessary license, you can personally secure a one-time song-specific license (for a fee) from the same agencies listed above -- BMI, ASCAP, or SESAC.
Recording / Synchronization Licenses
If you plan to record your arrangement of a copyright-protected piece and produce a CD or other recording that contains this arrangement, you must get a license from Harry Fox Agency. Their fee is based on the number of copyright-protected songs on your CD and the number of copies you plan to produce.
If you plan to post your arrangement of a copyright-protected song on YouTube, you should acquire a synchronization license from BMI, ASCAP, or SESAC. You may need proof of that license should the copyright holder seek to mute, block, or monetize your use of the song, or should you wish to monetize your use of the song (i.e., by advertisements).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In general, any time you are working with any song that is protected by copyright, you are working with property that belongs to someone else, and you must be granted permission in writing, and pay a licensing fee for that privilege.
It is illegal to use another person’s copyright-protected song without acquiring their permission as described in the scenarios presented above. NONE of these situations constitutes “fair use.” Moreover, the fact that a dulcimer club or festival may have obtained "non-profit" status likely has no bearing on your use of an arrangement of copyright-protected material.
Ask yourself this question: Why would I want to avoid compensating the composer (or other owner) for a piece of music that I enjoy enough to want to arrange and share with others?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FAIR USE
What exactly constitutes “fair use?”
"Fair use" is a doctrine that allows for limited use of copyright-protected material without first obtaining the permission from the copyright holder for certain purposes, such as criticism, parody, news reporting, research, scholarship, and teaching. To determine whether the "fair use" doctrine will allow you to make use of copyright-protected material without a license, you must consider each of the following four guidelines:
“In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include--
(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;”
As a dulcimer arranger and/or dulcimer workshop leader who may be profiting from teaching a song, it is NOT fair use for you to teach and distribute copies of your arrangement of a copyright-protected piece in a workshop unless you have been granted permission in writing from the copyright holder. (This is even true when you have created a "derivative work" from someone else's work, and every instance of that requires permission. See #2 below.) Note that this applies in any setting, including a small non-profit festival.
“(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;”
If you’ve written a dulcimer arrangement of a copyright-protected work, you’ve created a “derivative work” -- you’ve “derived” a completely new work from a copyright-protected song. This requires permission if you have any intention of sharing it at a dulcimer festival.
“(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole;”
This applies if you want to make (and distribute) a photocopy of a short segment of the original copyright-protected work to demonstrate or illustrate a point related to your workshop topic -- you may do so as long as it is less than 10% of the entire work. You must cite and include the copyright information on the bottom of the page. You may NOT copy an entire piece, even if it is intended for “educational purposes” without getting written permission.
“(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.”
A dulcimer player who has your unpermitted and illegal arrangement of another person’s copyright-protected work would have no need to purchase the original, thus depriving the composer of potential income that would have been generated by a direct purchase of the original from the composer/publisher. Similarly, the original composer may have the desire (and ability) to create his own dulcimer arrangement of his own composition -- he created the song, he owns the song, and therefore has 100% control over what happens to it after he publishes it. He may be very happy to have you share his music in this unique way, but he must first grant written permission (either directly or through his publisher), and is also entitled to receive a customary fee.
And here’s a very important caveat: The original composer (or copyright holder) now owns your arrangement, and the copyright stamp at the bottom of the first page must reflect that.
Here’s an actual example that I was required to print in one of my books that included my dulcimer arrangement of “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’,” a song composed by Richard Rodgers, initially published by Williamson Music, and then taken over by Hal Leonard Corporation. Rodgers died many years ago, but his publishing company still holds -- and protects -- the original copyright.
©1943 by Williamson Music, a Division of Rodgers & Hammerstein: an Imagem Company
Copyright Renewed
This arrangement ©2015 by Williamson Music, a division of Rodgers & Hammerstein: an Imagem Company
International Copyright Secured All Rights Reserved
Reprinted by Permission of Hal Leonard Corporation.
Copyright Renewed
This arrangement ©2015 by Williamson Music, a division of Rodgers & Hammerstein: an Imagem Company
International Copyright Secured All Rights Reserved
Reprinted by Permission of Hal Leonard Corporation.
Note that my name DOES NOT APPEAR as the owner of the 2015 copyright, even though I wrote this arrangement in 2015! I do NOT own my own arrangement -- it belongs to the copyright holder. (I CAN give myself credit for it up near the title -- "Arranged for Mountain Dulcimer by Carol Walker" -- but I do not OWN it, nor can I put my own copyright stamp on it.)
I was granted written permission by Hal Leonard to arrange and publish this piece in my book, for which I paid my fee (based on the number of copies I was printing and the retail price), but now I cannot teach this arrangement in a workshop without getting permission from Hal Leonard again, and paying another fee -- each and every time I might want to teach this piece.
So, I obviously have never taught this arrangement in a workshop, nor have I ever shared the arrangement, other than as a part of the book which is available for purchase. But I sleep well at night, knowing that I’ve done the Right Thing, and that the copyright police will not be knocking on my door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The term “fair use” is tossed around very casually as a catch-all cover-up for outright copyright infringement. I believe in many cases dulcimer players and arrangers are completely unfamiliar with the technical legalities of copyright law, but may have gleaned just enough information from similarly misguided fellow players and internet postings to feel justified in considering their unpermitted arrangement of a copyright-protected song as “fair use,” simply because they’re teaching it or performing it for “educational purposes,” in a “non-profit” dulcimer festival.
Wrong. It’s stealing, and it’s illegal. Period.
I'm happy to chat with you if you have further questions. Send me an email: [email protected]
I was granted written permission by Hal Leonard to arrange and publish this piece in my book, for which I paid my fee (based on the number of copies I was printing and the retail price), but now I cannot teach this arrangement in a workshop without getting permission from Hal Leonard again, and paying another fee -- each and every time I might want to teach this piece.
So, I obviously have never taught this arrangement in a workshop, nor have I ever shared the arrangement, other than as a part of the book which is available for purchase. But I sleep well at night, knowing that I’ve done the Right Thing, and that the copyright police will not be knocking on my door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The term “fair use” is tossed around very casually as a catch-all cover-up for outright copyright infringement. I believe in many cases dulcimer players and arrangers are completely unfamiliar with the technical legalities of copyright law, but may have gleaned just enough information from similarly misguided fellow players and internet postings to feel justified in considering their unpermitted arrangement of a copyright-protected song as “fair use,” simply because they’re teaching it or performing it for “educational purposes,” in a “non-profit” dulcimer festival.
Wrong. It’s stealing, and it’s illegal. Period.
I'm happy to chat with you if you have further questions. Send me an email: [email protected]
©2024 Carol Walker | The Music Lady, LLC | All Rights Reserved.