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From: blickstein@orphan.DEC (Dave Blickstein)
Newsgroups: net.music
Subject: Copying sheet music
Message-ID: <3166@decwrl.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 8-Aug-84 10:17:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: decwrl.3166
Posted: Wed Aug  8 10:17:27 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 10-Aug-84 01:52:34 EDT
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I think Dave Taylors idea for a sheet-music swapping club is a shameful idea!
I'd like to discourage everyone from participating.

You've probably heard this before but the vast majority of musicians, including
those fortunate enough to be published, don't make a lot of money.   Even if
they have a couple good years, it's almost never enough to support them for
a lifetime.  They should never be cheated out of their rightful due.

There is an unfortunate problem in our society that discourages art because
it is seldom economically feasible to be an artist.   It's particularly bad
in the area of music, which as Mr. Taylor well knows can be copied extremely
easily (tape recorders, copying machines, etc.) without paying any royalty
to the artist.   It is depressing to think of the potential number of
talented people we will never hear because of this economic discouragement
of art.   I refuse to contribute in any way to this situation.

Your analagy between taking a book out of the library, and copying music is
full of wholes.  Firstly, people do not typically photocopy every page of books
they borrow.  Secondly, you seem to have lost sight of the fact that what the
library does is legal, and what you are proposing is ILLEGAL.

I'd like to convince you that you shouldn't do this by an analogy of my own
that perhaps you can empathize with.

Suppose you made your bread and butter by selling your own computer software.
You have invested YOUR money and time (and perhaps heart and soul) into
developing the software.  Your income is solely derived from the sale of
your software.   Now suppose you heard about this computer club that swaps
software and low and behold, your programs are among what's being swapped.
You talk to me (a member of this club) and I tell you that I do buy a certain
amount of software, but the realities of life are that I can't afford all
that I want so I copied yours.  No harm done right?  I'm sure, you'd say
"Oh, well in that case it's ok....".   My guess is that you wouldn't, because
your proposal indicates a lack of consideration for others which is usally
accompanied by a self-centered attitude, and my guess is that because of that 
attitude, if someone was STEALING your software you'd be unusually vocal about
that.

None of us are guilt-free.  I have a few tapes of albums I don't own.  Usually
I do it to see if I like the album sufficiently to buy it (which I do if I
like the music).  But I don't go around proposing organizations that cheat
artists out of royalties.

	Dave Blickstein

	(UUCP)  {decvax, ucbvax, allegra}!decwrl!rhea!orphan!blickstein

	(ARPA)  decwrl!rhea!orphan!blickstein@Berkeley
	        decwrl!rhea!orphan!blickstein@SU-Shasta