As we continue this series, let us point to “those who have gone before,” the Barbershop Harmony Society who has been working at making our barbershop arrangements legal and above board for quite some time. I use in this post some selected excerpts from a couple of things put out by Rob Campbell, MUSIC Category Director and Joe Liles, staff liaison with the music publishing companies.

From Rob:

“...laws and policies have been in place for many years. When I joined in the early 1970’s, copyright laws were very similar to what they are today. Recent attention to copyright is not a case of significant new developments. Rather, we are taking it more seriously now, insisting that (in contests and shows at least) our members remain legal. This is very much in keeping with our corporate personality as a squeaky-clean organization.

The problem has been that our amateur-oriented tradition has often played fast and loose with copyright laws. I just coached a quartet Thursday night that did an old 70s chart – handwritten scrawl, no composer or lyricist, no copyright information at the bottom of page 1, no arranger, had heard it somewhere before on a record – and it was like “old home week.” (NOTE: How many of us have done the same thing, Harmony?) I was weaned on those charts, and I bet many of you were too. In my case I contributed to the mess by transcribing quite a few songs during the 70s and early 80s as part of my self-education in arranging. In all those years many of us sang and competed with illegal charts and barely noticed, much less developed a moral position. It was the norm. Now the norm is legal charts, and I urge you all to get solidly behind the initiative to get legal and stay legal. Thanks for continuing to read: “

More information concerning Copyright (by Joe Liles)

• Songs and arrangements written before 1923 are in public domain (no longer protected by copyright). 1923 songs become public domain in 2019.
• Songs and arrangements written from 1923 thru 1978 are protected for 95 years from their year of creation.Arrangements of those songs are the property of the owner of the song, not the arranger.
• Songs and arrangements written since 1978 are protected for the lifetime of the composer(s) plus 70 years. Arrangements of those songs are the property of the owner of the song, not the arranger. However, an arrangement of a public domain song can be copyrighted by the arranger.
• To arrange a song, an arranger must be granted permission by the owner of the copyright of that song. Until permission has been granted, it is in violation of copyright law for a copy of the “planned” arrangement to be rehearsed or performed. The arranger(s) and performers would be exposed to litigation.
• The arranger of a protected song has no distribution rights to that song, other than that allowed in the agreement between the copyright owner and the arranger. Any distribution of subsequent copies is an exclusive right of the copyright owner, not the arranger, unless the arranger owns the copyright.
• Singing illegal music on shows and in contests is in violation of copyright law. For many years our competitors have vouched for their compliance by signing the contest registration form that includes this statement: #4. “Certifies that we have complied with the copyright law in the acquisition and learning of our contest songs/arrangements. We understand that ineligibility will be a consequence for violation of this statement.”
• Consideration is being given to making this statement more predominant and clearer, since ineligibility can be declared before or after the contest.
• BHS is in full compliance with copyright law and expects all members to be the same. Copyright law as it pertains to our organization has been covered at COTS, Harmony College, publications, and in many district schools for years. “

As you can see, there are a number of things (mentioned by both gentlemen) of which we would rather NOT be aware. However, ignorance of the law is not an excuse for playing fast and loose with our music! No, ‘tisn’t easy -- and might cost a few “greenbacks” (or pink-or blue-backs, in the case of our Canadian sisters). It wouldn’t hurt any chapter (that has not already done so) to review the status of the arrangements in their music repertoire library.

There will be more in forthcoming articles concerning the process for legalizing “suspicious” music and the directions you can take to obtain good arrangements. Thanks again for reading this far. Make copies of these articles and keep them on file with your music library. They might come in handy for the next Music Librarian in your chapter – or the next music director!