COMPUTER £6.25 / August 2012/ CM180 M A K e Perera ar Terie SU ieee ate) ye Oe) SPV RS (Chiptune cheats! / Get great vocals /| Sampling copyright clarified / And more GERBER technique and more! aa ZYNAPTIQ PITCHMAP le ROLAND R-MIX > As computer musicians, we'veall used ‘samples in our muse. But how many times hhave we unknowingly used them illegally? ‘The legal implications of aking samples from other people’ records without permission ‘canresultinfarmorethana slap on the wrist, soltreally does pay toensurethat you're working by the book. ‘Before we star let us assure you that you're ‘quite unikely to have layers knocking at your door it ou'ejust creating sample-based music athome for your own amusement. There are Certain specific laws about this, but they'eso rarely enforced that we won't cover them here. No, were mainly concerned with showing You how to get the right icencesin place if you want The mostcomprehensive database RS for Muse youres member (wrchis free) you cansearch the gatabase ond ‘he publisher of track Head to wow Draformusie.com or cal hem on 207 590544 Inthe US, one euvalent society 50 / COMPUTER MUSIC torelease or perform your tracks pubic. that’ your long-term goal, then younneed to start doing things bythe book. Afterall you dont want to spend years working on your tunes, only tofind out that theyre not releasable ‘The confusing matter of copyright sat the root of allot this. Lets say you take a vinyl record Containing vocal rack, use your turntable to scratch anevrriff using the acappella and then sample it. Who owns the copyright on that? The Criginal vocal is by somebody else, but youve made it your own witha fickof the wrist so the resulting sample is created by you.right? The slightly csheartening answer yes and no, ‘We're focusing primarily on UK copyright aw here, which sa constantly evolving beast. The thesong youre sampling things get arching ia sre search engine ww Iyrstercomand wewsonglyiescom repoth goodresorces Typmg some of the ries into Google ut quotes arund Sspecpases) isso a good bel, ‘original 1988 Copyright, Deslans and Patents ‘Acthas been updated several times toring it inline wth European directives. You can read the leosiation at wwwtinyur.com/zektaytit youfancy asnoaze, However, the original act has flled to keep up with the fast pace ot technology, which means that navigating ‘complex areas lke internet streaming, media fle duplication ana sampling law sa bewildering exercise forall concerned. Inthis article, were going to take alook at how the law has been used to restrict and retain muse copyrights, as well asthe practical steps ‘youcan take you want to legaly use samples inyour own tracks. And te fist step? Find out whose track you're sampling inthe first place. 2 2 2 2 nin t luck this way ryamustedentieaion ‘oundhound.com. You coud alco posts Ciponwwwwatzatsong.com =the site hhasanaetive nso common who myA SAMPLING SAGA Oe ‘Sampling as we know it today hasitsroots in 1980s hip-hop culture. Ashardware samplers ‘got cheaper producersbegan t incorporate Portions of other people's music into thelr own Fecords.Thisreached a zenith nthe late 05, with rap artists such a De La Soul and Public Enemy releasing albums of lyrics spat over ‘multilayered beats and breaks sampled from ‘ld sou! and funk records Gilbert's law Prior to the 1990s, artists who used samples had, ‘onthe whole, disregarded copyright lawn thelr pursuit ofthe perfect drum loop or lick. Chuck D from Public Enemy describes the stuation at the time inthe book Creative License ~The Law & Cutture of Digital Sampling "twase’tnecessary toclear those albums ~ Fear ofa Black Planet, {and t Takes a Nation - because copyright law didntaffect us yet. hey hadnt even realised ‘what samplers did” However, high-profile case in 1991 between rapper Biz Markie and singer) songuritr Gilbert OSullvan found ia favour of ‘OSulivan ana brought the practice of sampling in general into the public eve. Asmajor acts ‘emerged from the rap scene and started to ‘make more money from thei albums, publishers ‘woke up and wanted a pece ofthe financial pie, ‘The early 1990s sav a deluge of egal writs issued to labe's and individuals for copyright infringement, causing aseismic shiftin the ‘sampling soundscape. Fear of possible future financial repercussions saw artistsnow having ‘tocontact the publishers and performers of {theirchosen samples inorder to ‘clear’ thelr material for usein thelr productions, For many ‘smaller artists, the cost became prohibitive ‘asthe original publishers would demand percentage royalties and thousands of dollars Up front before the record had even been pressed, As such the culture of hiphopartists Sampling whichever records they liked was |uickly ripped in the bud, with only the most Successful artists abletopay thefees. ‘Aside from the nancial mpications, the new culture of sample clearance also hurt the creative side ofthe record industry. a artists weren't as free to folow their inspiration Italso introduced paperwork -all samples had tobe documented fang declared within the sleevenotes.naeltion, some artists ike The Beatles and Abba would simply never allow thelr work to be sampled (Madonna's Hung Up being a rare exception. First things first Bore we get bo daw ta tha murky work tfsamle erence isha todeline ow Licensed to thrill Happily there are plenty of sources of samples thatarefree from legal headaches. Firstly, check out sample libraries. Most of them (including Computer Musicsamples)) comes with licence stating that you're entitled toreproduce the sounds inany way Yyousee it within the context of a musical Composition, without having to creditthe publisher or seek any further legal ‘agreements, Mosthavea clause that prevents You reproducing their sounds as sso you Couldnt use them n solation orto create another sample CD. Aimostall sample libraries arelicensed for youand you alone. lt you're using sounds trom Freesound (www freesound.org) or any ther web- Biz Markie make music now < ‘exactly a copyright is potentially infringed byusing a sample. Infact, there are several lstintly diferent copyrights to consider ‘when doing so Firstly the original sound recording (what you hear on the physical Direcord Is copyrighted. Secondly the music and yries are copyrighted (ie the composition) Sampling aso Constitutes an infringement of performances ‘captured on the recording the players" performances inthe stuso).Just to acd to the ‘complications, the artist may oblect in some ‘way tothe use oftheir work nan alternative Context, so their moral rights may be infringed, ‘The ease of clearing these various copyrights is entirely at the whim ofthe publishers, Performers and songwriters concerned: based sharing libraries, youll come across the Creative Commons licence, of which ‘there are many alfferentkinds. Check outthe ‘website (www.creativecommons.org.uk) {or the specifics, but in bret, you should look ‘ultfor the Attibutionticence, which wit allow youtto sample, remixand distribute withno legal problems. Finally the term royalty-ree’has become alitieconfused over the years. Although t ‘originally meant that you could pay one Single amount ouse and alstribute audio, thistsnolongertrue.Check the Licence ‘Terms or FAQsection of any website that claims to offer royalty tree content just to make surethat itis what you thinkitis. COMPUTER MUSIC / 51>make music now HOW TO GET A SAMPLE CLEARED ‘There are many rumours when comes to sampling - we've heard everything from halt second or lessis OK’ and drum sounds dont Count to'make the sample unrecognisable and ‘youdort have to clear it: While it'sunikely that anyone will identity asingle that or snare'in ‘yur track, that doesrt make it legal you want touse asample legally -evena snippet-thenit shouldbe cleared, Take Fatboy Slims You've ‘Come. Long Way Baby as an example: even though the album sounds like Norman Cook has ‘thrown samples together with reckless abandon ‘everythings neatly categorised and credited in the sleeve notes ‘The process of clearing a sample's seemingly simple: all you have to dois obaln permission for itsuse from the copyright holder. Unfortunately, its the negotiations withthe pubishers that become more complicated ‘The fist step isto identity the publisher of the track you want touse ~see our quick tutorial ‘on page'0 for help. Ifyou know the artist and tile, contact PRS on 0207580 5544 torequest the deal, They havea huge database ofall the ‘Works, plus a sample team versed in sample ‘learance guidelines to help things get trick. PRS have a(rather confusing) website at wor prstormusie.com with information about this Fora shortcut nead to wwwatinyur.com/ ‘eynd Tt forthe sample clearance details. PRS ‘donot clear the sample for you, but they provide the resources for you todo so, an they wil, handle the resuiting royaity spits thats part of your agreement wth the copyright holders. Tt’ also worth noting that PRS wl he if You think your own copyrights being infringed. Advice is available at wwrutinyurl.com/btSbebl Including astep-bystep guide to the process. ‘Samples culled from TV shows and fms also need tobe cleared withthe relevant strinutors. Check the show/tim credits for details or visit www imdb.com. Very ol films or TV shows ‘may bein the public domain and exempt from copyright -wwwarchive.org has large Gatabase of video content ripe for sampling. Really old music recordings may aso be subject to simlar copyright expiration - there are more detals at wurw.bityiKrtnda Deal or no deal? IRS up to youto cut adeal withthe publisher. Some large publsherslike EMI have online tools, Putting on the writs in place (wwwemimusicsample.co.uk) to ‘make your request relatively hasseree. With ‘others, ou may have tofilin a formand send itto them, along with the original song, your version ad the samplein isolation. After that itsup to you tonegotiate either abuyout ofthe sample (le, a one-off payment or apercentage ‘of royaties to each rights holding party. It youre sampling a song which itself has sample embedded within't then the whole procedure must ake the original copyright holders into account too. Not surprising it Canali get very messy! For example, 90s hip-hop tracks often samples olger funk records and restillunder dispute. As such if you ‘sampled one of those hip-hop tracks, you may never be abe to clea It ue tothe original ‘learance not having been settled allthis sounds ike hata work, there are ‘agencies who will handle the whole process for ‘yu inckicing researching publishing rights. ‘Theleading one s www.sampleclearance.com they recommend geting in contact three ‘months before your intended release date to ‘ive them enough time to sea the del ‘Always remember that copyright holder haste right to refuse any request. And don't leave t untithe last minute to clear a sample - doit well before the manufacture or release date '35 youl invariably have to pay more oF give uP ‘more of your rights to license asampieif you've left unt the ast minute! pee eee Weveatendymentionedthe butareinfactmistaken.Dela__thecaseofBittersweetSymahony_copyight ownesof the speci Tanamarsos1UScourtemeinSoulweresuedtorstimiliontor by TheVerve mebandsecired”” recording tat was sample wchitwasruled WatBizMarkie singatooptromheTurGes. tenghstesampleaRoting" Oversasiaws canbe tricky, CeuldnetuscasampleofCbert Youshowedhe on thelrsample-Stoneserchesralinstrumental- BUtthey dr always wrk out as OsullvansAlone Agin.Cizwes MedalbumsFeetHghandRising. orsothey ought Following expecte.For example Timbaland souurtbythecrmetercethat > Therecordcompamhadcesres| Wetrctssuccasthesomit cocapedalavaulttodclomine TenamedtistolowuplPAll tet thedecaredsamples bt copyrghttetiers ecmedthat__ whetvrhehadtherghttouse Sampleclewed'Thiscertamly thebandnegiecedtomertion theysampled more thant, nriffroma 967 Baywood fn art thelasttimethategal’tatparicaaroncasthey " Weenceaed and-folowinga sons on Pe Yowon the Game Duc CSeotsamplescausedshigh: thoughttincosequenta,___toThotlogaacton-The Verve toarlquaedinslon copyright promecourroomscttement. _"Themorenighprofiethe _hadtogleupatiotthe trace awa the te, tured out that Thereorepentyofeacrwhere_ tack themoreliayRisthat royalties Asyourmigh¢puere, —tefmstado doteven hol publishers think they've cleared allof therightstousea sample 52 | COMPUTER MUSIC compensation willbe sought. ‘There isno better examplethan, thatwasasignificantamount! ‘They were then also sued by the the copyright themselves, so the ‘case was dropped.James Blunt ‘What ou want to release a cover version of song. rather than sampling a recording oft? Most publishers willgrantalicence to release a ‘cover versionifituses the same song structure {and rics. Some willeven allow changes or an interpolation of your wm iyricsif you request thisin deta. Gettingalicence sespecally Important youre planning onseling your ‘cover version on Tunes or through sites ke Bandcamp or CDBaby, asthese sites are ‘watched closely by industry lawyers. \Wespoke toMartya Norris. director of world ‘wide dance label Almighty Records, whohas been releasing cover versions nto the clubs ana charts for decades. How does he obtain te rights {or Aimighty’ pumped-up versions? "We don't negotiate with publishers directly” he reveals, “We contact MCPS (Mechanical Copyright Protection Socety and ilin the forms ourselves. ‘They then arrange the mechanical licence for us. ‘The publishers can objectf they tke, but they hardy ever do. The MCPS then fake 85% rom the dealer price from each CD or MP3 sold as @ royalty, whichis passed back to the publishers Inthe USA there are several organisations that issue mechanical iences eluding BMI, ASCAP and the Harry Fox Agency. There's also ‘ane2sy online tool at www.songelearance.com that covers the American market, Martyn adds, "I's sometimes strange what ‘well be granted alicence for ana wnat wil be refused. We inially othe licence to cover dames Blunt's Youre Beautiful which we issued briety:but then the publisher puta block onthe release fortwo years. even though other dance versions were out there already. And sometimes Countries will react vastly ciferently to the same song. Our version of Se Fire To The Rain has sols ‘very well overseas, but not so much in the UK.” Instant replay ‘Another routto consider asamp seems {oo expensive toomuchhassletoclearls THE COVER GIRLZ aaa rerecordingirecreatng the bit of thesong that you sampled, and using that as your sample Instead. Commercial dance labels do thisallthe time tokeep costs down, because much ikea cover version, you only have to obtain the ‘mechanical royalties to include a'replay'of thesamplein your track. Better stil if youcan capture the spirit ofthe original sample ut keep your version distinct enough by altering the {une sufficiently. you wor't have to giveup any royalties at all since bath the recording andthe tune are now distinc from the origina. Identical sounds Companies ike Scorccio and Replay Heaven ‘make sample replays thelr business, and thelr soundea-lkes are uncanny, Take a istento the examples at wwwreplayheaven.com tohear ther replay of Steve Winwood Valerie, famously sea by Eric Pryazin Cal On Me. Kate Bushs The Cover Girlz Clouabusting also gets aremake for Utah Saints ‘Something Good 08. Strangely, the Saints ‘managed to clear the sample onthe original Felease in 1992 (the only time Bush has ever ‘allowed a sample to be sed), but chose to use ‘replay inthe 2008 version, How do they do It Wel, Replay Heaven ‘employ vintage synths, old-school recording methods and session vocalist tomimic the performances rom older tracks. Their replays ‘are sometimes so convincing that theyre ‘contacted by the original musiclans and singers, ‘erroneously claiming copyright infringement! ‘There are afew vocallsts who mimic vocals in thelrown studios and then emai you the sessions. For example, Ann Bally at wwwthunderlungs. ‘com can mimic a wide range of styles, It you're interested in seeing how youcan pullo your own sample eplays, stay tuned for ‘emis, where well show you now todoitem The sound of the underground Youmight be wondering how SoundCloud, YouTube and similarsites can get away with hosting such a large amount of sampled tracks and unofficial remixes. Simply put, there's so much out there that publishers aren't chasing every cheeky bedroom DS who uploadsa mashup. There'sno real ‘money tobe made from those who aren. ‘making money themselves. ‘Act ike Eclectic Method or DJ Earworm, whose tracks ae stitched together from hundreds of samples, host their tracks and ‘mashup videos online butnever tr tosellthe actual mixes. They justuse themaspromo toolsto plug theirliveDJ shows or logitimate Work. Inthe 2009 documentary Copyright (Criminals, which examines the history and legalities of sampling, Eclectic Method were interviewed. Anything that can be put onto ‘audioand video together is fir game for us.” they explained. "We've received no cease and:desists and no person going, How dare ‘You touch my content: Never happened” ‘Although not legal, publishers often turn blind eyetothiskind of usage. Its not worth ‘pursuing every infringement, anditgives the original tracks anunderground edgeanda, ‘new audience. However, don't assume that Just because you aren't going to sell your tracks, ou'lbe immune to the legistation. Be careful and sensitive to others hard work hile exercising your own creativity! y COMPUTER MUSIC / 53