Dalit Warshaw At SPECTRUM

Posted: 7/20/2013 11:55:50 AM
coalport

From: Canada

Joined: 8/1/2008

New York thereminist, Dalit Warshaw, gave a concert last Saturday (July 13, 2013) at SPECTRUM (Lower East Side Manhattan). She has posted several of the selections she played to her YouTube channel and they can be accessed at the following URL:

http://www.youtube.com/user/varsoviamusic

One of the numbers posted from the concert is SUMMERTIME by Gershwin but for some reason there was a violation of copyright claim on it and the audio has been muted by the YT police. This seems very odd. Anyone have any idea why this would happen? Although it has been more than 75 years since the death of George Gershwin (the number of years it takes for a composition to pass into the public domain) the writer of the song's lyrics, George's brother Ira, did not die until 1983, so presumably the copyright will be valid until 2058. 

Still, there are dozens of theremin renditions of SUMMERTIME on YT that have not been accused of copyright violation. Why was this particular performance targeted?

 
Posted: 7/21/2013 3:48:03 PM
dewster

From: Northern NJ, USA

Joined: 2/17/2012

Nice videos, thanks for the pointer!

"Still, there are dozens of theremin renditions of SUMMERTIME on YT that have not been accused of copyright violation. Why was this particular performance targeted?" - coalport

Meet the new automated copyright infringement enforcement and policing unit (same as the old automated copyright infringement enforcement and policing unit):

Please put down your Theremin. You have 20 seconds to comply.

You are in direct violation of Copyright Code 1.13, Section 9.

You have 5 seconds to comply. Four... three... two... one...

I am now authorized to use physical force!

Posted: 7/21/2013 11:16:16 PM
FredM

From: Eastleigh, Hampshire, U.K. ................................... Fred Mundell. ................................... Electronics Engineer. (Primarily Analogue) .. CV Synths 1974-1980 .. Theremin developer 2007 to present .. soon to be Developing / Trading as WaveCrafter.com . ...................................

Joined: 12/7/2007

"Still, there are dozens of theremin renditions of SUMMERTIME on YT that have not been accused of copyright violation. Why was this particular performance targeted?" - Coalport

It might not have anything to do with copyright on Summertime perhaps ?

How many notes in sequence does it take for copyright "violation" to be judged to have occured?... And how close to the pitch of the original notes does a "copy" need to be to be a "transgression" ?

Is it perhaps possible that a note or two on Dalit's rendition crossed some threshold/s which were identified by the robot as an infringement of some other musical sequence not related to Summertime? ... Is it perhaps possible that theremin playing is more at risk from the kind of "analysis" done by automated software/robots than other instruments with less pitch wander? 

The above is possibly me being silly - but it really is getting to this sort of level of absurdity I think... Sounds samples are being copyrighted - you can create an original piece of music, but it can fall foul because you use a copyrighted sound.. What happens if you create a sound using your equipment (not using a sample) and this sound matches the sound of some copyrighted sample?

Is there an "agenda" at work here.. Perhaps an agenda to stop (or greatly reduce) the number of artists publishing their work freely - make it frustrating for them (and for their potential audience) - force them to sign up with some major label to get the "protection" from the label... ?

It seems to me that those most affected are musicians right on the edge of commercial viability - or those who have a different 'drive' and are not willing to comply with dictates of the establishment.. Those who are good enough and popular enough to come up from below detection level, and appear on the radar.

 

Posted: 7/22/2013 4:56:48 AM
randy george

From: Los Angeles, California

Joined: 2/5/2006

It may have not been the "Summertime" theme by Gershwin that got flagged. The piano/voice arrangement that was performed could have its own copyright, and the performance may have been flagged by whom ever owns the rights to the arrangement.

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