CD Production

Art Work

Generally the art work for the CD cover and inside pages of the chosen style of booklet will be YOUR responsibility. Unless you are planning a major CD release when you would probably use an external agency to handle the production of the CD, it is your responsibility to proof and supply the required graphics and text.

Depending on who you use to produce your CD will depend on the format of your documents. Therefore, it is very important that any text or graphics supplied are correct. Here are a few guidelines to consider:

• Keep formatting to a minimum, the more complex the formatting the greater chance of errors and possible higher costs.
  
• If you are using special characters, ie accents, umlauts etc, check carefully they have been reproduced correctly.
  
• Bare in mind that generally the more complex the artwork the greater the cost. Keeping artwork to a minimum doesn’t mean the finished product will look tacky.
  
• Before sending any proposed artwork, check it thoroughly. Its far better to get it right first time than get involved in a protracted communication with your CD producer.
  

Permissions and Licencing

This is a very confusing and often misunderstood area of the recording business. The following is some general advice to get you started, it is by no means definitive and if you are in any doubt proper legal advice should be sort.

The first thing to be considered is:

Q. Are professional musicians being used?

A. If so how you proceed will depend on the contract drawn up between the professional and you.

Where a contract exists between you and any professional musicians it would be important to inform them that the concert will be recorded and build in any waiver or permissions into the contract.

If no formal contract exists then the professional should be informed that the concert is being recorded and asked to sign a waiver/permission form. This should explain the intended use of the recording.

Sample release form

Without some kind of formal written permission, it is possible that your organisation could fall foul of the Musicians Union or PRS rules and regulations on performers' rights.

Q. Is the music in copyright?

A. this can depend on the publisher, arrangement and age of the proposed work. For example, if the work is 20th century the likelihood is that it will still be in copyright and require some form of licence. This can also apply to an older work that has been rearranged or that has been kept in copyright by the publishing company.

Q. Will I need a Licence?

A. If the music is in copyright a licence will be required. The type of licence will depend on the number of CDs manufactured. If you are planning a major CD release and are looking at sales of over 1000 copies then a licence per score maybe required. However, in the instance of a run of less than 1000 then it is possible to purchase a Limited Manufactures licence, (LM licence).

For further details about the LM licence go to:

LM Licence Guide

NOTE: A licence is required whether 1 or all of the programme is in copyright. Therefore, when planning a programme to be recorded it is prudent to check the copyright status of the proposed works. It would be better to either have all of the programme in copyright or none. The LM licence is a fixed price and therefore is not affected by the number of works in copyright.

Q. Who owns what copyright?

A. There are two types of copyright:

• The original creator/author of the material
• the person who recorded the programme

Copyright – copyright of the content of a CD belongs to the original creator/author of the material or whoever is holding copyright of that score. In the instance that the original creator is also the person who commissions the CD this makes the process a little easier. If permission is given by the author then a CD can be produced, though, it may still be necessary to purchase a LM licence.

Phonographic rights – the phonographic rights are those held by the person who recorded the material. That person has the right to deny or permit reproduction, copying or distribution of that recording. This does not mean they hold copyright of the actual material contained on the recording.

Further information

The following links will be of use in the production of your CD:

• MCPS-PRS
• Musicians Union

Disclaimer

The above is a summary of the information I have researched and is not a definitive account of the process involving performing rights, mechanical copyright, licencing or any other area involved with artists or performers rights and the manufacture of a CD.