The bible is full of exhortations to live and speak truthfully. In John 14:6, Jesus declares that he is 'the Truth', and in John 14:17, the Holy Spirit is described as the 'Spirit of Truth'. Furthermore, John the evangelist writes:
I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
Therefore, if we are to reflect Christ’s love in our work, we must strive to be people of truth and integrity. As Christians who work in the music industry, there are many ways in which we might be tempted to forsake our integrity, yet this also presents us with many opportunities in which to be different. Though what follows chiefly concerns practices for performers, especially of classical music, I hope it will be useful to all Christian musicians.
Copyright licensing
As Christians working in the music industry, we must take seriously the command God gave Moses in Exodus 20: ‘You shall not steal.’ For musicians, practices around musical copyright, photocopying and scanning, and performance licensing are all areas where we will face a strong temptation to lose our integrity. Christ not only upheld the Old Testament law (Matthew 5:17), but intensified it (Matthew 5:20). Therefore, we must consider carefully how our behaviour in these matters can be distinctive.
As a key to interpreting all of God’s law, Christ gave the law of love:
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
If the creators of the music we are playing or listening to are alive, then we can ask ourselves the question, ‘how would I want others to act concerning my own creative work?’ If there is any uncertainty in our decision making when it comes to performing a living composer’s work, it may be a good idea to look them up online and send them an email for clarity. For many (especially classical) musicians, of course, the ‘other’ is often deceased. This can seem to leave a grey area when it comes to photocopying or scanning their music. However, the value of their musical product is still due to their estate. The legislation which we should be familiar with concerning copyright is ‘The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988’. You can read a short summary of the law here: UK Copyright Law. Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 :: The UK Copyright Service.
The basic rule is that, in the UK, copyright lasts for a period of 70 years from the end of the calendar year in which the author dies (and where there are multiple authors, this refers to the longest surviving author). If the music originates from outside the European Economic Area (EEA), the copyright lasts for as long as the music is protected by copyright in its country of origin, provided that this does not exceed 70 years. [1]
In cases where the composer has died, the income generated from royalties may help support future generations in their family, or perhaps fund cultural activities which continue to celebrate and distribute their music. We can be tempted to think that, after a composer dies, their music is common property, or perhaps that they would not mind because they are famous and successful enough that their music already generates plenty of income. Do the managers of Leonard Bernstein’s estate really need to receive the extra £2.50 they would get if I bought a second copy of Somewhere from West Side Story, rather than photocopying my friend’s? We must be clear with ourselves that the answer is ‘yes’. Creators of music, be they famous or historic, are human beings who deserve credit and reward for their work.
IMSLP and YouTube are both useful websites where a wealth of musical material is freely uploaded by the public. However, regulation on these websites is relaxed, so many in-copyright scores are available on IMSLP (look out for the red ‘Non-PD EU’ sign), and there are many videos on YouTube which have not been uploaded by their owners. It is important to note that, even if seventy years have elapsed since a composer’s death, an edition of their work my still be in copyright, as this is classed as the work of the editor. Therefore, we must also check the dates of the editor when downloading an edition from IMSLP. On YouTube, a glance at the username of the uploader will usually make it clear whether or not the video has been uploaded by the owner themselves or by an organisation with authority to act on their behalf, such as a record label. If it has been uploaded by a user with no clear links to the performer or creator of the video, they may have posted content which would otherwise cost money to buy in store or stream online. We must therefore be careful when watching videos on YouTube, even if they are for our own personal enjoyment.
Let's put this more positively:
it is a good thing to spend our money on the music we listen to and perform.
Learning Samuel Barber’s violin concerto may be a months-long project for a performer, and performing it a rewarding and unforgettable experience, perhaps resulting in a professional fee from ticket sales. Next to all these benefits, investing £25 in a hard copy of the score which will be kept for life is surely worth it. My piano teacher at school was an accompanist who had a disciplined routine of buying scores of every work he accompanied, then writing in the score the name of the person he performed with and the date of the performance. This gave him a valuable library of music, as well as a wholesome record of his musical experiences.
For those who use iPads, the temptation to cut corners when reproducing music (for example when sharing by AirDrop) is even stronger. We may use websites which sell downloaded sheet music, such as Musicnotes. Again, the temptation is to buy a single download and then share it with a duo partner, rather than buying two downloaded copies, or buy five copies when we intend to distribute to a choir of ten members. As an accompanist, what will you do when students send you a score? The principle we should strive for is the same as when photocopying a hard copy: each individual copy of a piece, even if digital, should be legitimately obtained.
Licensing
Another important practice we must adhere to in performing and broadcasting music concerns licensing. The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 states that you need to get permission from the copyright holder to ‘perform’ music in public (this includes broadcasting recorded music, for example as background music). A music licence grants you this permission. Licences are there to make sure that artists receive the royalties they are due when their works are performed or otherwise heard. The important licensing body to be familiar with in the UK is PML PRS, a joint venture between the UK’s two music licensing organisations – PPL (Phonographic Performance Limited) and PRS (Performing Right Society) for music. The way the system works is that composers and other artists register with PML PRS, giving PML PRS authority to distribute licences for use of their music. Venues and performers pay PML PRS for a licence (called The Music Licence), and notify PML PRS of any performances which take place, so that PML PRS can distribute royalties accordingly. Even when the sheet music for a performance has been legitimately bought, it is still necessary to have the licence in place. PML PRS offer varying tariffs for the licence. If you are unsure about whether a licence is needed to perform a piece in a particular setting, you can call PPL PRS for advice on 0808 253 4776. Even if your concert is for charity, you still need a licence, though there is an option to apply for a discount. You can also search their website here: PPL PRS | TheMusicLicence | The UK's public music licensing company.
Money
We all know that musical work, compared to many other professions, pays relatively meanly. This increases the temptation we face to be dishonest in our relationship with money. Freelance work may be paid in cash, meaning that we must be diligent in keeping cash records and filing our tax returns accurately. Questions may arise here. For example, if you buy a pair of smart shoes to wear for gigs, but you also wear them in your leisure time, is it right to claim them as a business expense on your tax return? If you are unsure, it might be worth hiring an accountant who can talk you through the rules, but the principle must be to act with complete integrity.
He said to them, “Give to Caesar what is due to Caesar, and to God what is due to God.”
How much to charge for a gig also requires thought. When the Roman soldiers asked John the Baptist ‘What should we do?’, John said ‘be satisfied with your wages’ (Luke 3:14). Fees for creative work can differ greatly, so when asked for a quote for a project, the temptation exists to negotiate the highest fee possible, but this may be unfair on the organisation offering the work. If the organisation is one with sparse funding, perhaps a charity or a church, then sensitivity will be required. It is worth thinking how many hours will be required to prepare the music, and to quote a fee commensurate with this. On the other hand, since we are offering skilled labour, our hourly rate may need to reflect the time we have spent learning our trade, and the regular time we spend maintaining the level of our art.
Another temptation, having received an offer and settled a fee, is just to wing it in performance. Again, we must be honest in the way we prepare for an engagement, and put in the work we are being paid for (aside from ethical considerations, this attitude will also help us to build a trustworthy reputation and find more work).
Professional relationships
When we make friends through music-making, we are regularly hearing one another play and discussing our work. There is a subtlety we need in how we talk to one another about our music. One mistake is to idolise and adulate someone we find impressive, being completely uncritical about their work and full of praise for them, which might become praise for them as a person, rather than just as a musician. When I reflect on some of my relationships which have fallen into this category, I realise that this kind of response is actually unkind. It has no real thought given to it, only that the other person has talent I could only dream of, and perhaps there is an undercurrent of jealousy which comes with it. Thinking and speaking in this way will lead to problems. Inevitably at some point the bubble will burst, and the reality will hit that they are a flawed human being like anyone else. At this point, the words on which the relationship has been built will be exposed as flattery, and it will be hard to unpick what was genuine and what was false in the friendship.
In Ephesians 4:15, Paul exhorts the church to ‘speak the truth in love’. We must tread a fine line when giving feedback to fellow musicians. On the one hand, we must avoid flattery, which presents the recipient with an overinflated view of themselves, and on the other hand we must be kind in our criticism, speaking the truth in a way that builds the other up and protects their confidence.
Another temptation we face is to overstate ourselves as musicians. This might mean giving the impression that we have more discipline, know more repertoire, can play with a higher degree of skill, or understand the significance of music more than we really do. Often, when musicians meet for the first time, we have what feels like a short interview to find out the sort of activities each of us is involved with. It is so easy at this point to hint at a more successful career, more engagements, more income than we actually enjoy. However, Jesus says:
But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Furthermore, puffing ourselves up in this way is also unkind to the other person as it can make them feel inadequate. Paul’s advice to think of ourselves with ‘sober judgement’ (Romans 12:3) is useful here.
Conclusion
Though doubtless there are many more areas in which as musicians we must strive for truthfulness and integrity, let us as followers of Jesus seek the truth in all we do, for as He says in John 8:32, 'the truth will set [us] free.'
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