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Provider of Free Public Domain Music Re-Opens

Chip Zoller writes "This community took note when the International Music Score Library Project shut down last October, and when Project Gutenberg stepped in to help three days later. I would like to alert you all that our site, IMSLP, has re-opened to the public for good after a 10-month hiatus. All the news updates in the interim can be found linked to the main page. We take great pride in re-opening as it demonstrates our willpower to make the masterpieces of history free to the world; and moreover to make manifest that we will not be bullied by publishers sporting outrageous claims of copyright in a country where they clearly are expired."

13 of 142 comments (clear)

  1. Unfortunately... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    the ensuing slashdot effect will take it offline for another ten months.

  2. Re:I have to say it by Alarindris · · Score: 5, Informative

    This is sheet music, not actual music files.

    I don't think anyone can really claim to own Bach's Brandenburg Concertos written almost 300 years ago.

    The recordings of his concertos, on the other hand, are a different story.

  3. Re:I have to say it by Eternal+Vigilance · · Score: 5, Funny

    If it were possible, the recording industry would sue you for breathing.

    Of course! That violates the copyright on The Police's "Every Breath You Take" and Pink Floyd's "Breathe."

    I really can imagine the folks at RIAA humming "Every breath you take, every move you make, every bond you break, every step you take, I'll be watching you" as they're running deep packet inspections. Kinda creepy to think of that song as an NSA-FISA surveillance theme song. :-(


    I always feel like somebody's watchin' meeeee...

  4. Re:This is great news! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    The members of the band don't know music notation.

  5. Re:So by arose · · Score: 5, Informative
    --
    Analogies don't equal equalities, they are merely somewhat analogous.
  6. Re:I have to say it by wrook · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I don't think anyone can really claim to own Bach's Brandenburg Concertos written almost 300 years ago.

    You'd think so wouldn't you. But what they do is get an "expert" to reinterpret the score every few years. They write notes, modify some things, etc, etc. I'm not musician, so I can't really comment, but some musician friends of mine really believe that the "new" scores have value.

    Anyway, these new reinterpretations have valid copyright. Yes, you can play the ones from 100 years ago, but as one of my friends said, "Why would you want to. They're horrible." Again, I can't really comment either way except to admit to "not getting it".

  7. Re:I have to say it by mrbluze · · Score: 5, Funny

    What creeps me out is that the topic of "Every breath you take" is simply and plainly stalking.

    Now go and listen closely to 'Don't Stand So Close To Me' ;-)

    Yeah, someone should go call the Police.

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    Do it yourself, because no one else will do it yourself. [beta blockade 10-17 Feb]
  8. Needed: Cheap Sheet Music Viewer by jimmyhat3939 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    This is what we really need. Yes I know there's software out there for a laptop, and yes I know there are $800 devices for this, but there should be a OLPC type device with a decent sized screen that you can put on your piano or music stand or whatever and grab music off a shared drive or flash RAM card. One of these days people will figure out that people really do want single-purpose devices, like the Tivo or iPod, but for other, less pervasive, uses.

    --
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  9. New editions of old music by oboeaaron · · Score: 5, Informative

    But what they do is get an "expert" to reinterpret the score every few years.

    There are actually very good musical reasons to do this. Music written or printed 300 years ago looks much different than that published today, and often requires an editor's help to bring it into a form usable by modern performers. To give one example, many instrumental sonatas and other works were written out in "figured bass" notation, which gave the keyboard player only the bass line and numeric symbols representing the harmonies. It was up to the player to improvise the right-hand part. Since very few keyboard players these days can do this, editors of modern editions of Baroque music usually provide a written-out interpretation of the chords, which looks just like normal, modern keyboard music. There are also many notational conventions that have either died out completely, or changed their meaning, which need an expert editor to "translate" them for modern players. In addition, many scores of the time were not published, but circulated in handwritten copies, which often contain many mistakes. Modern editors have to sift through the various copies and make judgments as to which versions are correct. Bach's Well-tempered Clavier is a famous example.

    On the other hand, if you want or need to study the scores as they were written, you want to get an "Urtext" edition, which preserves the original notation as much as possible. Collected editions are presented this way. In the case of the music of J.S. Bach, there are two collected editions, one completed in the 19th century, and the other in the latter half of the 20th. The 19th century edition (Bach-Gesellschaft edition) is now in the public domain and may be copied freely - in fact the Dover editions of Bach are simply reproductions of this edition. The 20th century edition (Neue Bach Ausgabe) is still very much under copyright.

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    Journey onward.
    1. Re:New editions of old music by grizdog · · Score: 5, Interesting
      Everything oboeaaron says is true, but it's more extensive than that. I manage the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, and we have had to put a low priority on sheet music. The only way to be really safe is to go to wherever the original or another uncopyrighted copy is located (in our case usually either the British Museum, the Yale Rare Books Library, or the Morgan Library in NYC), and copy it yourself. This is tedious, and even if a publisher hasn't really added anything substantial to their own copy, they will claim copyright.


      Providing parts and scores would be a useful service for our site to provide, but it's going to remain on the back burner for a while. Along the lines of another thread, it would be great if there were a standard, open format for sheet music. That would provide much more of an incentive for me to pack up my laptop and get some of those parts copied and available.

  10. Re:I have to say it by dam.capsule.org · · Score: 5, Funny

    That must be "Hey Jude" by The Beattles.

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    What sig ?
  11. Re:I have to say it by Mateo_LeFou · · Score: 5, Funny

    They could organize a Sting.

    --
    My turnips listen for the soft cry of your love
  12. Royalty-free music! by greyhueofdoubt · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yes, folks, all these FREE public domain HITS can be YOURS!

    -Camptown Races!
    -Amazing Grace!
    -She'll be comin' round the mountain!
    -Ain't we got fun!
    -Anchors Aweigh!
    -Hail, hail the gang's all here!
    -I can dance with everyone but my wife!
    -Mammy o'mine!
    -Row, row, row!
    -Swing low, sweet chariot!

    Yes folks order now and for NO CHARGE you can sing these songs ANYWHERE! Saloons! Public squares! The telegraph office!

    And if you order NOW we'll include at no extra charge:
    -The whiffenpoof song!
    -Stop yer ticklin', jock!
    -Nobody knows de trouble I've seen!
    -It's delightful to be married!
    -I love my wife, but oh you kid!
    -Everybody works but father!

    Don't wait! Call now! DO IT!

    [all real songs]
    [not a troll]

    -b

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    No offense, but I've stopped responding to AC's.