Can I use 1930′s Jazz/Swing music in songs I’m making now?
I’m not quite familiar with the copyright/public domain/royalty laws. Basically, I’m wanting to recreate some of these older jazz/swing songs. I would like to re-cover them with the original orchestra/band as the music. Also, I would like to play with some of the tracks in an editor program and see how they sound “modernized” with a constant drum beat behind them and other sounds here and there. Not quite sure how that will turn out, but it proves as a decent project.
I’m hoping to start singing at local places, so it has to all be completely legal.
If a work is in the public domain you can do whatever you like with it. Generally speaking, anything published before 1923 is in the public domain, unless the copyright has been renewed. If you’re unsure about the copyright status of something, you can check the government records (linked below), but if it’s pre-1978 you’ll have to request a record for (I think) a small fee.
If you’re just playing around with the piece at home, that’s fine even if it is under copyright; you just can’t publish it or perform it publicly without permission. However, when playing at local venues, the venue is actually the one responsible for covering the copyright restrictions. What this means is that cover bands can play at a bar if the bar has paid the licensing fees that allow that; the band itself just has to check with them. I’m not sure if a different musical arrangement would be allowed by this though.
Black Chamber: “Other Days” – live jazz / trip hop
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