Most of us sing because we love music and the way its emotional/spiritual power touches us and our audiences. When the magic is there, we forget the details. Yet there are people for who m details have a magic of their own. Find those women in your choir and give them this article, after you have read it. It is because of one such woman that the Portland Lesbian Choir began to pay attention to copyright compliance: thank you, Cheyenne Chapman.

Fundamentally, copyright compliance is about honoring the creators of our music, helping them make their living from their music so that they can make more of it for us. In Sister Singers choirs, these creators often are women who are friends and lovers, members, if not of our choir, then someone else’s. We are everywhere. “Knowing one” often is an incentive to changing disrespectful behavior.

If you have a new resolve to take copyright more seriously, what do you need to do? You’ve found a song you like and want to include it in your next concert, here is what to do if.......

1. the song is (or was) published, even though you may have a photocopy of a published score. Buy enough copies for your choir to use in rehearsal. If the publication is out of print, you must ask the publisher for permission to make copies. (They may offer photocopies for sales from their archives, so don’t assume you can make your own.) Local sheet music stores can give you phone numbers and addresses for publishers.

2. the song is published, but not for women’s voices, or with enough parts to challenge you, etc. Contact the publisher for permission to arrange. Ditto if you want to change the words significantly (i.e. create a parody or make something “PC”). Make sure to indicate if you will be charging admission to the performance of your arrangement; standard permission forms often are designed for schools and religious organizations.

3. someone gave you a copy of an unpublished song: heads up here, because many of us receive such songs from other choruses. These are often the songs by the folks we most want to support. I find it helps to think of this as an “approval copy” from a music store: a chance to look something over before you buy. You must get permission to use this song, even though it is not published (though who knows, it might be by the time it comes to you.) You need permission to make copies, permission to perform, permission to make changes (arrange). It is possible, though, that the name, address and phone number of the composer are not on the music. That makes things harder, but does not change our responsibilities. Ask the person you got it from to ask the person they got it from, to remember which choir sang it, etc. Follow all clues until you track the composer down. Call ASCAP and BMI (phone numbers below) to find out if they have an address and/or phone number for the copyright holder (who won't necessarily be the composer or the arranger). Then, when you (with permission) make your copies, add a note: “Property of (your choir). Used by permission of Name, Address, Phone” which is copied onto every piece of music. (Copyright research is sort of like back country hiking: leave it cleaner than you found it.)

4. you have a tape of a song and figure you can transcribe the arrangement. Ask permission from the artist; the song may be published and you’ll be saved the work, but either way, somebody owns that arrangement and you must ask/pay for its use. (Just think, you might be the fourth request that inspires someone to publish a songbook.)

5. you have a tape or score of a solo version and want to arrange it for the choir. Get permission from the copyright holder and be sure to ask permission to use the arrangement the way you want to: to perform in a concert to which admission is charged, to give the arrangement away to other women’s choirs or to sell your arrangement (or publish your arrangement). See interlude for composer and arrangers.

Legal copies in hand, you want to give a concert. ASCAP and BMI are the two major performing rights organizations in the U.S. If your choir produces concerts, you should have an agreement with each. Contact them at:
ASCAP; One Lincoln Plaza, New York, NY 10023; 1-212-595-3050
BMI; 320 West 57th Street, New York, NY  10019; 1-212-586-2000
Performance fees are based on highest admission fee and the seating in the hall. Fees still are due on free events.

Received with rave reviews from your concerts, you want to make a cassette tape or CD for sale. This is a new set of questions, not covered here. Ask advice from a choir who has done it and give yourself lots of time to track down permission. Permission to perform and permission to record for public sale are different. The Harry Fox Agency in New York City is your central resource for obtaining the mechanical licenses required for recordings.

A lot of work? Well, yes it is, but it is how we can support working composers and arrangers. Remember to give yourself lots of time; the people you are calling or writing to may not love this detail work any more than you do, even though it is to their benefit. But it is wonderful to get letters back from a composer who is delighted that you admire her work, and to discover that she has three other pieces that you might like to see. Honoring the copyright honors the composer and helps our sisters continue to create music for us.

What should you pay for music? Fees vary. Some composers/arrangers want you to make a contribution to a cause related to the song or will give you permission to arrange or perform without charge. You may encounter a composer who has never charged anyone but wants to move into a professional position or one who has a set fee. The Sister Singers Network in 1993 recognized $50 (or 75c a copy for smaller choirs) as a standard fee for copying and performing non-published music. This can provide a basis for comparison and negotiation. Often, composers and arrangers like to receive a copy of your concert program or a tape of the performance, if available.