[musictlk] A Little Bit on Royalties

[Marion Gwizdala]

Humberto,
    The question I can answer concerns the recording of copyrighted music. 
First my disclaimer: I am not an attorney. The information I offer is meant 
as informal guidance only and should not be construed as legal advice. 
Current United States copyright laws protect a copyrighted work for 85 
years. If music has a copyright, you are legally required to pay copyright 
fees to the holder of those rights. The current statutory fee is $.0918 per 
track.
Therefore, for every copyrighted song on an album run of 1000, you would pay 
$91.80. If you have ten such songs, that would be 918.00. Most major 
copyright holders use the Harry Fox Agency to collect their copyright fees 
and, I believe, Harry Fox charges a service fee on top of the copyright 
fees. In addition, Harry Fox charges for a minimum run of 500, even if you 
plan to run fewer.
    Copyright holders are limited in their ability to negotiate these fees. 
They may either charge royalties or not; they cannot reduce the amount of 
royalty they receive. You would have a much better chance negotiating these 
terms with an independent artist, like myself, than with a well-known 
artist, like Neil Young.
    If you have any questions, please feel free to write back. This sort of 
discussion is valuable to anyone interested in recording music. I believe it 
is our ethical responsibility to our fellow artists to pay them what they 
are due. Some believe celebrity talent makes enough money and don't need our 
royalty payments. Royalty payments are the energy exchange that is how the 
Universe works to create prosperity. As artists, none of us would like to be 
cheated out of what is rightfully ours. The music we write is our staple - 
the commodity we produce and exchange. Do the right thing: Pay royalty 
rights!

Fraternally yours,
Marion Gwizdala




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Humberto Avila" <avila.bert.humberto2 at gmail.com>
To: <musictlk at nfbnet.org>; <nfbPad at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, March 20, 2012 10:17 PM
Subject: [musictlk] selling music and keyboard questions


> Hello,
>
>
> I posted these questions months ago, however I still haven't gotten any
> responses yet. I am reposting them again, and any suggestions are
> appreciated.
>
> I have a question about selling music, either in audio CDs or digital.
> I play the keyboard and know several songs that I'd like to share with
> others. I would like to record my music that I play through my computer or
> other device and then either burn the mp3 files to Audio CD's and then go
> and sell them or offer them for sale somewhere. My concern is, will I be
> able to do this freely without legal or non-violation restrictions such as
> copyright restrictions? Will I, for example, be violating copyright laws 
> if
> I do this E.G. Recording my keyboard music and selling it, even if it is
> popular songs? How about going digital and put them on youtube or 
> Facebook?
> According to previous posts I have read on this list regarding experiences
> with iTunes and CdBaby, among other services, I don't think I want to go
> that route first, because of all those fees and setup rigors that some 
> went
> through to get their music across. All I want to do is get exposure and
> maybe even support myself while going to college or for personal
> expenditure. Besides, it has been my hobby for years.
> Another question is, can you please clarify what the difference between a
> professional/major musician, and an independent / non professional 
> musician
> is?
> lastly, I have acquired a Yamaha YPT-320 61-key keyboard as a Christmas 
> gift
> (a little early.) It came with some accessories including a USB medi
> interface cable for laptops and computers. Is this cable capable of 
> sending
> all the sound output from the keyboard to the sound system of the computer
> and so I can record with much ease? or what does this cable do other than
> medi stuff?
> any suggestions to these questions are appreciated. are here any blind
> keyboardists that can suggest me please let me know.
> thanks,
> Humberto
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