Many people in my last post responded - write your own tunes or only play originals. This is missing the point of the tradition of this music. Every jazz artist composes. Improvisation IS composition, thats my point. But in terms of the standards, this is a traditional part of playing jazz music and integral to the study of the music. Every single great artist tapped into the body of work known as the American Songbook to find material for the expression of their own art. Every time Billy Holiday sang a tune she re-composed it in an original way. The standards and jazz are inexorably linked - theres no way to avoid studying or playing them. In a way, its like in painting when you paint a still life. Its the same bowl of apples and oranges that everyone is painting but each artist creates a new work from that image. The issue is HOW the tunes are being used. In jazz it is as a vehicle for a new and original work, not a performance of the piece in the way the composer intended (you cant say that for any other musical art form). There is no real defined standard as to what constitutes a performance, but I would challenge a copyright lawyer to try to extract the tune from the improvisation. Furthermore, many jazz musicians dont know, but there is a time limit restriction on the LENGTH that the recording may be. This is taken from the Harry Fox website ---> The current statutory mechanical royalty rate is $.091 (9.1 cents) per song per unit for recordings of compositions up to five minutes (5:00) in length. For example, if one were to make a recording of a song that is less than five minutes in length (e.g. 4:07) and then manufacture and distribute 500 units of the recording, the total amount of royalties due would be $45.50. ($0.091 X 500 (units) = $45.50). For songs over five minutes in length, the rate is based upon $.0175 (1.75 cents) per minute or fraction thereof as demonstrated below: 5:01 to 6:00 = $0.105 (6 X $.0175) 6:01 to 7:00 = $0.1225 (7 X $.0175) 7:01 to 8:00 = $0.14 (8 X $.0175) For example, if one were to make a recording of a song that is six minutes and thirty-eight seconds in length (6:38) and then manufacture and distribute 500 units, the total amount of royalties due is $61.25. ($0.1225 X 500 (units) = $61.25). So, not only are jazz musicians penalized for using the very material that their art requires but are penalized for taking long solos (actually, that may not be such a bad idea at jam sessions...) I feel that these laws are archaic and need to be redefined in a more fair way. Im not against paying but it should be at a rate that is fair and reflects the true use of the material.
Posted on: Sat, 19 Apr 2014 16:06:00 +0000
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