Re: registering a composition

[Valentin Villenave]

On 5/21/20, Francesco Petrogalli <address@hidden> wrote:
> I have written it with lilypond, but it hasn't been performed yet. I
> wanted to secure the copyright before performing it. Given that there
> is no performing artist yet, there is no recording, so I cannot
> register it with ASCAP. Have I got this right?

No registration anywhere is needed to "secure the copyright". All you
need to have is a way of proving your anteriority if anyone were to
come and claim they’ve written it instead of you. There are several
commercial services that can do that for you (though many are scams),
but there are cheaper and simpler ways; a simple web search brought me
to the following page:
https://copyright.co.uk/legal-copyright-law.html

“““
It is essential to prove the date of creation of the work. An easy but
somewhat unreliable method consists of posting a copy of your work to
yourself in a sealed envelope just after completion, and never opening
it. The postal service’s date stamp will theoretically prove the date.
This can then be opened in the presence of a judge or solicitor for an
official confirmation of the date. For this to work, the envelope seal
must be intact and not appear to have been tampered with.
”””

Now, before even considering registering with ASCAP, you should
perhaps ask yourself if you’re _really_ sure that you want to publish
under "All rights reserved" (which would prevent a _lot_ of people
from simply performing your work). There are many alternative licenses
out there, that may authorize "not commercial" uses (whatever that
means), copying, or even making new works based on your work while
still having to credit you appropriately. I’m just saying that you may
want to give this at least a thought before closing that door forever.

Cheers,
-- V.