A logical position, concisely stated. Thanks much, Fred Bone -----Original Message----- From: Howard Posner [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, December 01, 2003 12:29 AM Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: performer edition, facsimiles (another tangent)
Fred Bone at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > However, can > it be that J. B. maintains that it legally holds the right to control any > performance (recorded or live) of the music (a form of reproduction, no?), > public or private? I suppose that the remaining questions are: > > Can a publishing company declare sole publishing/performance rights to > unedited music in the public domain? > > Can a library control the reproduction/publishing/performance of music > manuscripts in the public domain that have been made available in > subsequently published editions? > > Does anyone own the public domain music within this book before me? If it's in the public domain, nobody owns it. That's what "public domain" means. A library that allows use of its manuscript subject to contractual conditions, such as limitations on use, can, in theory, enforce the conditions in a suit for breach of contract, but only against the party it contracts with. A publishing company can declare pretty much whatever it wants, just as I can declare that I'm Napoleon. It costs nothing to put a notice on a published edition claiming that you own the solar system, and someone just might believe you. Howard Posner
