http://www.jennylin.net/music.htm
The Copyleft concept:
I first came across the term "Copyleft" in "Le Monde Diplomatique" about two years ago
and found the idea intriguing. It seems to originate in the world of software, but
clearly has implications in every area of "spiritual property."
But here is how I understand it, in a nutshell: anyone can copy my music (those pieces
that are not already published, that is) as long as they identify the composer, don't
claim authorship themselves, and allow others freely to make copies of their copies.
I think that this is the best way for the music to get around. I don't think publishers
are very useful in this, and may even make it more difficult; and I don't particularly
want to be a publisher myself.
If anyone does wish to get a score, they can get in touch with my manager, Esther
Freifeld (egf.eprcATsystechconsult.com), who will send the material at cost (copying,
mailing, her time), or (preferably) will direct them to someone in their neighborhood who
already has a copy.
And anyone who (like Jenny Lin) wants to make the music available through the internet or
other media can do so also.
--Frederic Rzewski
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://newmusicbox.org/page.nmbx?id=28nw08
Free Scores Made Available Online By Composer
Pianist and composer Frederic Rzewski
By Molly Sheridan
© 2001 NewMusicBox
American pianist and composer Rzewski and pianist Jenny Lin have teamed up to distribute
his music free to anyone who is interested in it. That's right, free.
The composer got the idea after reading an article that used the term "copyleft" to refer
to a category of software that could be freely copied and used provided that the name of
the original author was mentioned and others could further copy and use the program in
the same way. Though born in the world of developing technology, Rzewski writes on Jenny
Lin's website, the idea "clearly has implications in every area of ‘spiritual property'."
Excited by the philosophy, he has applied the concept to music distribution. Now "anyone
can copy my music (those pieces that are not already published, that is) as long as they
identify the composer, don't claim authorship themselves, and allow others to freely make
copies of their copies."
"I think that this is the best way for the music to get around," Rzewski writes. "I don't
think publishers are very useful in this, and may even make it more difficult; and I
don't particularly want to be a publisher myself."
Pianist Jenny Lin
Lin says that when Rzewski first introduced her to the "copyleft" concept, she thought it
was a joke. After all, why would a composer want to give music away? But as a performer,
she also saw the merits since scores can be hard to find and very expensive. Rzewski's
manager, Esther Freifeld, had been sending the materials out at cost, but Lin suggested
that her time, copying and mailing costs could be avoided by posting the manuscripts on
the Internet. Rzewski questioned the quality one could achieve with files on the web, but
agreed to a trial run and allowed Lin to post the two works of his she was going to
perform, No Place to Go But Around and Mayn Yingele, on her site. They went up in May and
by mid-July, Lin says, the page had had several hundred hits.
In the future, Lin hopes to continue the project by posting the works of other composers
she is performing on her site whenever possible. Making scores easier to get a hold of,
she feels, will encourage additional performances of the pieces. And on a grander scale,
she also thinks that the exposure will eventually make composers more visible and
generate closer bonds with the performers of their own work.
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