Reworking of public domain song - can I license / place?

[denalihighway]

Hello all,

I've done an electronica reworking of Oh Holy Night. It nearly killed me in the end, but its finished...

I've changed the words and little and the arrangement.

Can I license / place it?

I never planned on selling it - but can one do that on a 'reworking' as such of a public domain song?

Thanks
Gar

[andygabrys]

well the good news is that it really is public domain:

http://www.pdinfo.com

is a good reference.

so it can be registered with your PRO and you will receive whatever fraction of the writers royalties that the PRO allows. I think you get some percentage less than 100% here.

but the rub is really in the details - and I honestly don't know for sure what happens when you change the lyrics - its still going to be a derivative work, so don't think it can be registered as an original piece - but am not sure. You need to find an entertainment attorney to help you get this straight.

Changing the arrangement is totally necessary otherwise you could infringe on an existing arrangement.

as far as sales vs. licensing - if the tune is PD and you haven't infringed on an existing arrangement then it would be available for both.

[Kolstad]

When a song is in the public domain, you are allowed to make changes as you please to both arrangement, melody and lyrics. Several examples of this, one being Chris Tomlin’s version of "Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone).

A derivative work is making changes to a song still protected by copyright and copyrighting the changes. An example of this is "Love me tender" which is based on a folk song "Aura Lee". The writers did a new lyric, and copyrighted that, but wrote in the amendment to the copyright form that they made no claim to the original melody of "Aura Lee", only the new lyrics. That is a derivative work.

New arrangements can be registered of public domain songs, and in some cases, songs that should be in the public domain is not, because the copyright has been renewed. You can check this by yourself in the online database at the copyright office's website.

I might be proven wrong though, as I'm just a dude writing on the Internet, not a lawyer

[andygabrys]

When a song is in the public domain, you are allowed to make changes as you please to both arrangement, melody and lyrics. Several examples of this, one being Chris Tomlin’s version of "Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone).

A derivative work is making changes to a song still protected by copyright and copyrighting the changes. An example of this is "Love me tender" which is based on a folk song "Aura Lee". The writers did a new lyric, and copyrighted that, but wrote in the amendment to the copyright form that they made no claim to the original melody of "Aura Lee", only the new lyrics. That is a derivative work.

I might be proven wrong though, as I'm just a dude writing on the Internet, not a lawyer

nice! that helps me

[denalihighway]

Great info lads thanks very much.

I knew for sure it public domain just not sure of the nitty gritty for a reworking.

It would be fantastic to have to deal with the 'problem' of royalty distribution

If I find out anything else I'll post here.

Thanks
Gar

PS - yeah, you're just 'dudes writing on the internet' ..but some dudes writing on the internet know a lot more than other dudes writing on the internet...

[eliforshort]

Just to clarify one thing..

I'm about to submit a reworking of a Mozart piece for string quartet. Not really changing any of the notes from the sheet music that I have, but the articulations are different. Not different enough to be a derivative work, certainly. Same instrumentation.

So, say it gets used in the scene I'm submitting to. I get 100% of the synch fee, because I own the master and technically the copyright to the song as well, because it's in public domain? And I will also receive back-end royalties, or no?