This course provides an engaging and methodical insight into the past and present cultural and commercial music industry developments, directions, and trends. It will equip the students with the knowledge and skills necessary to appreciate, understand and more productively participate in today’s music industry field.
Roots: Music Publishing and Copyright (Part 1)
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来自 West Virginia University 的课程
新世界：当代音乐产业导航
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从本节课中
Publishing and Copyright
与讲师见面
Darko VelichkovskiMusic Industry Program Director
Music Industry
[Music]
The music publishing business is essentially and critically
connected to music copyright.
Its history and development follows closely the history and
development of the copyright law itself.
The music publishing business largely stems from the copyright
code and is fundamentally based on its terms and provisions.
It is in essence a commercial objectification of the music
copyright, and as such represents a significant aspect
and portion of the music industry.
The development and advances of music printing in the
seventeenth century England gave birth to the music publishing
industry that brought music into the homes of the middle classes
of the time.
Enabling them to perform the compositions they love in their
living rooms.
Which embedded music further and deeper into the society than
ever before.
Music printing created the first mass produced commercial product
that could be sold and bought on the public market.
It created another commercial outlet and additional income
flow for the composers and in England, led to the first
legislative copyright regulations in history in early
eighteenth century.
Until this time, the crown granted exclusive printing and
publishing privileges called the royal patent for the particular
kinds of material to certain individuals.
One of the first significant royal patents for music was
granted in 1575 by Queen Elizabeth I to her main court
composers and musicians Thomas Tallis and William Byrd.
In gratefulness for their service, the Queen stipulated in
this sweeping patent that Tallis and Byrd were the only
individuals that could produce, sell, and trade printed music
paper.
And the only individuals authorized by the crown to print
and publish music of any kind in any language throughout England
for the period of twenty one years.
Not exactly stimulating for the music publishing trade diversity
and competition now is it?
As it created a business monopoly vested in two
individuals.
After the expiration of the Tallis Byrd patent, this
tradition of granting royal music printing privileges
continued thought with much lesser scope and shorter
duration until mid eighteenth century.
The scope of the subsequent royal music patents was most
often confined to music written by the patented composers or to
the particular kind of music.
And it was generally limited only to fourteen years.
The printing and publishing of regular books at time, not music
just regular books, was a different issue.
It was regulated separately from music publications until mid to
late seventeen hundreds.
The exclusive book printing and publishing privileges and powers
held since 1557 by the London's Company of Stationers, a book
publishing guild, ended in 1695 when the Parliament refused to
renew the privilege.
And instead started working on the first copyright act.
The act named after Queen Anne, the Statute of Anne, was
completed by 1709 and was enforced in 1710.
It gave to the book authors for the first time in history the
exclusive right to printing and publishing of their works.
The duration of this first historical copyright was
fourteen years with the possibility of renewal for
another fourteen years.
But how about music?
Was printed music a book?
Is it protected by the copyright like all the other books?
For a few decades after the statute was enacted, it wasn't.
Royal privileges still served as the only type of copyright
protection for music.
But due to a number of music publishing litigations and court
decisions regarding this issue, the copyright law was steadily
being applied to music publications in the mid to late
1700s.
The legal development, which is greatly influenced and boosted
the music printing and publishing industry, setting it
on a path that led to its today's shape and form.
The development of the first copyright law and the growth of
the music publishing business throughout this time is the very
root and the cause of music creators becoming self
sufficient generating their sustaining income in the
marketplace and not being exclusively dependent on support
and sponsorships by the nobility and upper classes as it was case
until this time.
It is the composer's declaration of independence.
The big bang of the music business universe.
The birthplace of the music industry itself.
Eighteenth century London became the first center of that
universe.
With music publishers making their first fortunes and the
music buying public creating the first composing superstars.
The Germans George Frideric Handel and Johann Christian
Bach, the youngest of the J.S.
Bach sons, both became independent self sufficient
music celebrities in England of the time.
And have permanently etched their names into music posterity
not only because of the public performances of their works, but
also because of the music publishing business they
participated in because of all the printing and sales of their
music which made their works popular.
Not only on the London stages, but in the English homes as
well.
Handel's first opera hit in London, Rinaldo, was published
by John Walsh the leading music publisher of the time, has made
such profits for Walsh that Handel wrote him a note saying
something along the lines of "how about next time you write
an opera and I will publish it."
And indeed the historical financial records show that just
in that one publication, Walsh made a profit of over 1500
pounds, which is equivalent to 380,000$ in today's value.
Now this isn't to say Handel faired much worse financially in
his career.
To his niece in Germany upon his death, he left an estate of over
five million dollars in today's value while John Walsh left an
estate of seven and a half million dollars in today's value
equivalence.
While Handel and Walsh kept enlarging their fortunes during
their lives and died with sizable estates, Johann
Christian Bach that we mentioned earlier made his fortune in
London and lost it all before he died due to risky music business
investments and partnerships he made.
Warning us today even from the great historical distance that
music business is and always has been an alluring but
temperamental creature.
That we enter its domain on our own risk.
And that we should treat it with utmost caution and respect.
Which is hopefully why you are in this class today.
