Types of Copyright
With
Imogen Heap
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44 lessons (2h 11m) · 1 free
Lesson transcript
Understanding Musical and Lyrical Works vs. Sound Recordings
In the music industry, it's essential to differentiate between two types of works:
- Musical and Lyric Works: These are the actual songs themselves.
- Sound Recording Works: These are recordings of those songs.
The Importance of Distinction
It's important to bear in mind that these are entirely separate works. Let's start with the underlying music and lyrics. Historically, this structure was established during the era of Tin Pan Alley and Brill Building songwriters.
The Classic Songwriting Process
Imagine two men smoking cigarettes with an upright piano, writing music and lyrics together. This process typically involved:
- A lyricist providing lyrics.
- A composer (often at the piano) writing the music to accompany those lyrics.
It was a collaborative effort, often split 50/50.
Evolution of Collaboration
While some core principles still hold true, the landscape has changed dramatically. Nowadays, artists collaborate in a variety of ways:
- Some write everything themselves.
- Others collaborate with different producers and songwriters.
The lines between producers and writers have become increasingly blurred:
- Producers are no longer just facilitators of recording.
- They might create beats and musical arrangements, with a top-line writer composing lyrics over them.
Rights and Copyright
The evolution has made the understanding of rights quite complex. Here are the key points to remember:
- The copyright in the music and lyrics is an underlying right.
- Once a recording is made of that copyrighted work, a separate set of rights attaches to the sound recording.
Example: The Beatles' "Yesterday"
Take for example the Beatles' song "Yesterday."
- There is only one musical and lyrical work.
- However, there are multiple sound recording works, including:
- The original by the Beatles.
- Various cover versions by different artists.
Thus, from one song, there can be hundreds of sound recording works derived from the original music and lyrics.
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Meet your guru
Meet your guru
Imogen Heap is a Grammy-winning English singer, songwriter, producer and technologist whose influence runs through two decades of pop, electronic and film music — and through much of the technology modern artists now take for granted.
Born in London in 1977 and classically trained on piano, cello and clarinet, she released her debut album 'iMegaphone' in 1998 before forming the duo Frou Frou with producer Guy Sigsworth, whose song 'Let Go' reached a global audience through the film Garden State. Her self-written, self-produced album 'Speak for Yourself' (2005) delivered 'Hide and Seek', the a cappella landmark that later powered Jason Derulo's chart-topping 'Whatcha Say' and Ariana Grande's 'Goodnight n Go', and continues to find new generations of listeners.
'Ellipse' (2009) won the Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical — recorded and engineered in her own home studio — and she went on to co-write and produce 'Clean' on Taylor Swift's Album of the Year-winning '1989'. She also composed the score for the stage play 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'.
A relentless innovator, Heap developed the MI.MU gestural gloves — recognised with three honorary doctorates — and founded Mycelia and The Creative Passport, initiatives building a fairer data ecosystem for artists. In 2024 she returned with 'What Have You Done to Me?', created with her AI vocal alter ego Mogen, while a viral resurgence of 'Headlock' brought her music to millions of new fans.
