How do I know if certain music is of public domain?
I wanto to use jazz music from Sun Ra for an amateur video to upload to youtube but I don’t know if it can be used or if it’s of public domain. Is there any web site specialzed in telling whether it is or it’s not?
Observing members:
0
Composing members:
0
4 Answers
I suppose you could wait to see if you get sued. That’s one way to find out.
Seriously, all I know is that any song or musical work published before 1923 is considered Public Domain in the US. Music recorded by Sun Ra is not likely to be Public Domain.
go to ascap or bmi and check the rights.
Assume no music is public domain. It is copyrighted the moment the notes are strung together.
That said, YouTube is anonymous as far as identification is concerned. Typically a company will simply ask YouTube to mute the video and not pursue legal action because it’s a pain in the ass for them.
Most of the videos I have uploaded have used copyrighted music. All of them have been noticed by the company who owns it, none of them have been muted. Why? I give them credit at the end and in the video description. They place an ad at the beginning of the video, we call it even.
Gerschwin has the tightest rights. and music usually does go into public domain after 75 years.
Beatles is also ironclad. others are much looser. I’ve had a class or 2 on song rights.
Answer this question 
This question is in the General Section. Responses must be helpful and on-topic.
Composing members:
0
