A Church Person’s Guide to Copyright: St Peter Claver Edition
“The musical tradition of the universal Church is a treasure of inestimable value, greater even than that of any other art. The main reason for this pre-eminence is that, as a combination of sacred music and words, it forms a necessary or integral part of solemn liturgy...He who sings prays twice.”
--Catechism of the Catholic Church
“All people have the right to economic initiative, to productive work, to just wages and benefits, to decent working conditions, as well as to organize and join unions or other associations.”
--USCCB, “A Catholic Framework for Economic Life”
We have two major ends in our use of music at St. Peter Claver.
1) We use music in our worship services to glorify God, bring us together as a worshiping community, and provide moments of contemplation, joy, and prayer.
2) We deal fairly with composers and lyricists, following Catholic social teaching.
To achieve the second end we obey US copyright law. But the law can be confusing. Outlined below are basics of copyright law, and details about how it applies to our parish.
The basics of church copyright law are covered in the following two-sentence summary. If you want to understand more in-depth, read on.
Any music, except musical-dramatic works (e.g. opera or musical-theatre), may be performed as part of religious service without paying royalties. All other uses of copyrighted material including concerts, use of sheet music, recording, and video-streaming require permission, payment or both.
BASIC DEFINITIONS AND LAWS
Music copyright falls into several “bundles.” Each bundle must be paid for separately. These are:
Creators own all these rights, unless they expressly give them away. Typically, creators sell these rights to the public, either personally or through assigning them to another entity. Creators’ payments are called royalties.
Performance rights
As noted above, we may perform any copyrighted music except musical-dramatic works (e.g. show tunes, operatic works) without paying performance royalties. This must be in the context of a religious service; a concert or fundraiser must pay royalties.
Publication rights
We must purchase copyrighted sheet music from an authorized copyright holder in sufficient quantities to meet our needs. For example, an eight-member choir needs eight copies of a song, plus copies for instrumentalists and director. If a parish needs 100 copies of a Mass or song lyrics for the congregation, they must purchase 100 “pew parts.”
Sound and video reproduction/mechanical rights
Any recording of a copyrighted work, publicly distributed, must be paid for. This includes streamed music, web videos, or rehearsal recordings for choir members and cantors.
How St. Peter Claver respects the law:
Simple enough, but questions do arise and mistakes are made. It is possible that anyone who violates the law—staff member, volunteer, congregant—could put the parish in legal and financial jeopardy. How can you know what to do? Below are some frequently asked questions.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
If you have a question that goes unanswered, ask the church’s music coordinator to help.
Q: This doesn’t seem fair / Religious music is supposed to worship God, not to make money / We’re a small parish; we can’t afford this expense.
A: Everyone should be paid for their work; this includes composers and lyricists. Would you accept being stiffed on your paycheck because your boss says your work is a public service, or that he’s too poor to pay you?
Q: The music business is such a ripoff. Artists aren’t being paid, publishers are greedy, etc.
A: This is true. But to the extent we can we will try not to rip people off.
Q. What about public domain?/ I know a song is in the public domain, but the hymnal says it is copyrighted.
A. “Public domain” means nobody (alternatively, everybody) owns the music.This term is thrown around a lot. Understanding the law on these issues is difficult, because the length of copyright depends on factors not worth discussing here.
Some context:
If you want to perform or record a public domain song in any context, you may do so without paying royalties as long as you are not violating someone’s copyright. You can make your own arrangement, write your own transcription, learn and teach by ear, or use a printed arrangement which is out of copyright. (Famously, Dover editions are copyright-free.)
If you don’t know whether something is in public domain, you can research the question or ask the parish’s music coordinator to help.
Q: What is fair use?
A: People have written books about this. Let’s just say this: fair use is usually a non-commercial use of a small portion of a work, used in a manner that will not hurt the owner’s sales. Because fair use is determined on a case-by-case basis, it’s best to consult an attorney before invoking this doctrine.
Q: I got a free copy of sheet music from a website / I bought one authorized copy of a song and want to make copies for ten people. Is this okay?
A: No. This is theft. It happens all the time, in churches and other settings, but it is not okay. We are legally and morally required to buy sufficient copies for our purposes from an authorized copyright holder.
Q: I know a copyrighted song by ear, and I want to teach it to my choir/the congregation without buying sheet music. Is this okay?
A: Yes, as long as the song is being performed for a religious service. Note: St. Peter Claver has a license that allows us to access and reprint many copyrighted song lyrics.
Q: I want to video a special Mass and put it up on social media without paying royalties. Can I do that?
A: You can do that, but you should be aware that you could face a takedown notice, suspension of your social media account, or a fine from the copyright holder.
You may buy an individual streaming license from a rights holder that will make this legal. You can research this question, or ask for help from the parish music coordinator.
Q: I want to video a special Mass, and distribute copies to my friends and family. Can I do that?
A: If you are making recordings for personal use, you may be within your rights to do this. However, the church is not involved, and cannot give you legal advice on the matter.
Q: I want to use a non-religious song in my wedding/funeral/Quinceañera and the priest is telling me no. Why?
A: Either you have a visiting priest, or you are not at St. Peter Claver! Some churches and priests, for liturgical or legal reasons, limit the types of music that can be played in their services. You can try to negotiate with the priest if this is a big problem.
A lot of people want show tunes at weddings and funerals. You may be able to buy a license for free-standing performance of one song; it depends on the publisher. The parish music coordinator can help you figure this out.
Q: Why do other churches have fancy worship aids every week with printed music in them and we don’t?
A: We are a small parish with a limited budget. We use oral announcements, hymnals, purchased pew parts, and our limited lyric-reproduction license to stretch our money. Those other guys...oh well, they’re great, but they’re not us.
Q: Do these same restrictions and laws apply to spoken Catholic liturgy (Masses, special offices etc)?
A: Because copyright is complicated, the answer is..sort of.
Q: I have another complicated question.
A: Ask the parish music coordinator. Always glad to help.
Disclaimer: This is not legal advice. If you want legal advice, consult an attorney.