How to Copyright Music

Copyrighting a song need not be a difficult task, but there are various ways to 'perfect' a copyright in any material, some giving the original creator more protection than others. But let's start with a simple description of what a copyright is, and is not, for a songwriter.

Copyright is a legal term and in the United States the purpose for establishing a copyright is contained within the powers of the Congress. Congress is required in Article I of the Constitution " the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries..." Copyright has existed for hundreds of years, and the general purpose has remained the same - to promote the creation of new creative works.

In the United States, a copyright to material is established as soon as the work is put into a tangible form. That is, as soon as it is printed on paper or stored on a hard drive, the original writer(s) of the music or lyrics of a song has a copyright to the song. However, perfecting the copyright still has a ways to go.

Once the music has been set to paper, the following steps should be made to establish your ownership:

1) Be sure to mark the piece correctly to show that you consider it a copyrighted song. Copyright law requires the following three things: 1."Copyright" or the © symbol, or even the seldom-seen "Copyr." 2."Creator's Name(s)" and 3."Year Created." This marks the piece as yours, and your original creation.

2) Send the printed material to yourself via the U.S. Postal Service in a sealed envelope. Have the postal service hand stamp both the postage and the seal of the envelope. This puts the weight of the U.S. government behind proving an approximate date and place in which the piece was first created. Leave the envelope sealed and in a secure location.

3) Simultaneously with (2) above, file an application with the Library of Congress for copyright protection. The forms and current fees for registering your work are available online at the Library of Congress' Copyright Office. The Library of Congress is also testing as of October 2007 an online registration system, with a lower fee. Currently, the filing fee is $45 for paper submissions, and $10 for electronic submissions. This will put a copy of your original song into the federal register, for comparison in case your copyright is violated.

Establishing a copyright is critical for success for a songwriter. Without a valid copyright, the song can be sung and recorded by virtually any one, without the original writer of the music being paid a penny. It may seem like a trivial matter in the creative process, but without a provable copyright, the songwriter or musical composer may be left with nothing but the memory of how they wrote their song. So, if you are a budding songwriter, write your music avidly and with passion, and just as avidly and passionately pursue your copyright to the song.