Marylin Bergman on Creativity and Copyright

This piece is a few years old but it applies today more than ever.  At the time, Marylin Bergman was the head of ASCAP (replaced last year by Paul Williams) and was seeing the loss in revenue to the members of her organization from piracy.  Here, Bergman is mainly addressing piracy of recorded works; however, her words apply just as much to the copying of printed music.

ASCAP PRESIDENT AND CHAIRMAN

MARILYN BERGMAN DELIVERS KEYNOTE

ADDRESS AT ASCAP "I CREATE MUSIC" EXPO

© 2006 Marilyn Bergman

Marilyn Bergman

Los Angeles, CA, Friday, April 21, 2006: ASCAP President and Chairman Marilyn Bergman delivered a powerful keynote address on day two of the ASCAP "I Create Music" EXPO, the only major entertainment industry conference dedicated to songwriting and composing. The standing-room only audience of music creators listened intently as Bergman, a three-time Academy Award-winning lyricist, spoke about what it means to be a music creator in the modern world. Her speech received a standing ovation from the more than 1,000 attendees who gathered at the Hollywood Renaissance Hotel in Los Angeles, CA to attend the sold-out conference.

A transcript follows:

"Good morning. I Create Music. Three simple words... loaded with meaning.

When we began developing this first-ever national conference devoted solely for songwriters and composers, we wanted to give it a name to which everyone could relate. So whether you had just written your first song, or won your first Grammy, you could connect with it. "I Create Music" seemed to say it all. It’s a proud declaration. A mission statement. A career choice. And these days, a line of defense. But we'll get more into that in a minute.

So, what does it mean to create music? Well, first of all, for every songwriter and composer that I know, and I know a few, it means you have no choice. Music chose you. Music is in your blood. It's in your head. It's in your heart. Your earliest memories are music-related. Maybe you were born into a musical family and music was performed on pianos, guitars, violins around your own house. Maybe you picked up an instrument in school and discovered a knack for playing it. Perhaps you fell in love with a song you heard on the radio and wanted to explore its mysterious hold over you. So you bought the music and played it over and over and over-studied its lyrics and its form. Then one day you decided to write your own song.

For many creators, it is just this mysterious and magical side of music that keeps them hooked for life.

Inspiration can strike at anytime:

It can be audible: the clacking of the wheels on a New York subway car, a far-off train whistle.

It can be visual: the shape of a slow moving cloud, a certain smile.

It can be emotional: the sadness in saying goodbye to a friend — a romance that didn't work out.

Ideas can come from anywhere: newspaper headlines, books conversations, dreams -

We music creators learn to remain open to all of these things, for these are our raw materials.

And like a diamond cutter works a raw diamond to make it sparkle, we take the raw materials of our lives — the heartache, joy, remorse, humor, nostalgia, desire, anger, hope - and give it shape, texture and beauty. We create music. We make it shine.

To attempt to do this at all is a noble pursuit. To do it well, to create something that will move people, and last long after you are gone, is a gift.

As music creators, we possess something that mankind simply can't live without: creativity. Creativity isn't something you can hold in your hands. It doesn't grow on trees. If you don't have it, you can't borrow it from someone else. It's a quality that exists in certain talented individuals. And when recognized, nurtured, expressed and harnessed, it can literally change the world.

The value of some products of creativity is easy to quantify. Their effects on our lives clearly measured. An invention such as the wheel or a medical breakthrough such as the polio vaccine are good examples of creativity that have made a clear and lasting impact on the world.

But what about music? Music is a creative product of the mind that affects and often changes people's emotional lives. Sometimes in large ways, but more often in small, intimate ways. How do you begin to measure the value of that?

Music has been used and enjoyed throughout man's history. The invention of newer devices to perform that music, from radio to TV to satellites, has allowed music to proliferate in greater ways with each new invention.

As the Internet rapidly developed, music was the driving force behind the proliferation of new technologies that allowed music to be transmitted with incredible ease.

You could say that it was the very importance of music in the lives of Internet users that created one of the greatest challenges to music creators. And that is the subject of piracy.

Our challenge now is not just to continue creating the music that is used and loved around the world, but to ensure that our right to make a living from our work is protected.

For in this digital age, when transmission of music is easier than ever, when there are corporate forces that aim to devalue our music and, in some cases, steal it outright, when there are new generations of music lovers who aren't taught and who don't understand the concept of copyright, it is up to every songwriter, composer and music publisher to declare the value of your music whenever and wherever possible.

In 1914, a group of prominent, visionary music creators founded ASCAP when they realized that their music was being performed without compensation to the writers. Founding member Victor Herbert brought a lawsuit to Shanley's restaurant in New York City for refusing to pay royalties. The fight took two years and went to the Supreme Court. ASCAP prevailed. And Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote the decision of the Court. He said, "If music did not pay it would be given up. Whether it pays or not, the purpose of employing it is profit and that is enough."

It is hard to imagine how the history of American music in the 20th Century — some of the most popular music in the world - would have developed without the strong copyright protection we've had to preserve value and compensate the creator.

Imagine if Irving Berlin couldn't make a living from his music, and just gave it up.

Imagine if Duke Ellington couldn't make a living from his music, and just gave it.

Imagine if Bruce Springsteen couldn't make a living from his music, and just gave it up.

While there have been challenges to copyright protection throughout much of the last 92 years, ASCAP, I'm proud to say, has remained vigilant in fighting for that protection. We continue to be engaged in helping decision-makers in Washington strengthen their understanding and respect for our right as creators to make a living from our work.

At our membership meeting yesterday, I reported on last year's Supreme Court decision in MGM Studios vs. Grokster, in which the Supreme Court sided 9-0 in favor of copyright holders and against peer-to-peer software providers such as Grokster, Kazaa and Streamcast. The decision sent a clear message that P2P enterprises cannot use the intellectual property of songwriters, composers and other copyright owners as start-up capital for their businesses.

Although this was a significant victory for creators, we are still at a critical crossroads.

These rapid advances in digital distribution are threatening not just music, but all forms of intellectual property: film, literature, software and art. And for those with no concept of intellectual property, such as today's young people, it's a very dangerous thing. That is why I feel it is so important to start educating our young people on the importance of respecting the creative property of those who create music: the composer, lyricist or artist. This education is vital if we believe that creativity is vital and if we want to see it survive.

Most children don't realize that the act of taking someone else's work by downloading it to their computer is wrong. And they most definitely don't equate it with stealing. But that's just what it is. Just as walking out of an art gallery with a painting with out paying for it. Granted, intellectual property is a difficult concept, but it is at the heart of copyright law — a law which is based on providing protection for all those whose livelihood depends on what they create. Violating this law not only hurts them but also impacts a whole line of people in a chain reaction that is spiraling out of control.

The songwriter/composer is hurt, but other people who are hurt include the publisher, the artist, the arranger, the producer, the musician, the sound engineer, the graphic designer, the audio technician, the record store clerk... and the list goes on.

To counter this, the ASCAP Foundation has launched an innovative program called "Creativity in the Classroom," which aims to use a positive, proactive strategy to instill in our young people a system which would serve as a foundation for understanding and valuing intellectual property.

The program educates children, telling them that what they have created is their property; it encourages them to label their creative work with their name and the copyright symbol, a circle with a "c" inside it, including the year, much as they would see on any published creative work.

Young people aren't the only ones who need this education. There are other groups who are out to make a buck who should know better. Some technology companies with the powerful ability to transmit all forms of media quicker and easier too often view the fruits of our creativity as simply files to be downloaded.

Well, we still call it music. We call it art. We call it our livelihood. And to those who attempt to devalue our music in any way, I say to them:

The buck starts here.

Music is a multi-billion dollar global industry. And it would be nowhere without the music creator. The truth is, the world's demand for music just keeps growing. Today, music is performed and used everywhere: radio, film, TV, websites, video games, sports arenas, shopping malls, bars and restaurants, cell phones; wherever there are ears to hear it; there is music.

Why is this? Because music resonates with people on a deep level, levels that we don't even yet understand. It taps into our emotions and connects us not only with each other, but to moments in our lives, both big and small, to places, to things. It enriches us. In our fast-paced, information-overloaded, multi-tasking, over-achieving, technology-obsessed era, music reminds us that we are human.

Today, music is so woven into the fabric of our experience on earth, that it would be hard to imagine life without it.

Fortunately, with a greater need for music, there is a greater need for music creators.

That is where you come in.

You are here at this EXPO because music has chosen you…and you take that seriously. You want to rise to your potential and utilize every opportunity that is available to you.

Well, you've come to the right place. For decades, ASCAP has nurtured our community of songwriters, composers and music publishers by bringing those individuals who have achieved success in the business with those who are just starting out to educate, guide and inspire them.

ASCAP's program of workshops has provided this service to countless numbers of music creators. Many of this year's panelists, some of whom are now top songwriters, film composers and music publishers, are past participants in our programs. So they know the importance of giving back to the music creator community.

They are here for you because they have been in your shoes: ambitious, eager and needing to know what are the best steps to take to get to the next level.

There are also a whole new world of tools and organizations available to assist music creators today, some of them created by ASCAP in response to your needs. Many of them are represented in our exhibition area. I would urge all of you to check them out.

They are here to help.

One last thing I would like to impart to you today is that although writing music can be a solitary affair, the music business is a collaborative one.

And as a lyricist who has spent my whole career collaborating, not only with my husband and co-writer, Alan, but with many wonderful composers over the years, I know full well the creative rewards that can be achieved.

Collaboration can be with another writer or a composer, but it also includes collaborating with those in the industry that also have something to gain from the collaboration: performing artists, music publishers, video game and TV producers, writers of musical theatre productions and filmmakers. The list goes on.

My point is that you are not alone. You are part of a creative community with shared opportunities, challenges, knowledge and experience. That community also includes people who support music creators such as entertainment attorneys, managers, and agents. That list goes on too.

For the next few days, this community will come alive at this EXPO to illuminate, explore and celebrate our craft.

I wish you all a truly enjoyable and most importantly, meaningful experience. If you take what you learn here and put it back into your craft and your careers, I know that the future of music is in good hands."

© 2006 Marilyn Bergman

About ASCAP

Established in 1914, ASCAP is the first and leading U.S. Performing Rights Organization representing the world's largest repertory totaling over 8 million copyrighted musical works of every style and genre from more than 230,000 composer, lyricist and music publisher members. ASCAP also represents the repertories created by the international affiliates of 70 foreign performing rights organizations. ASCAP protects the rights of its members and foreign affiliates by licensing the public performances of their copyrighted works and distributing royalties based upon surveyed performances. ASCAP is the only American Performing Rights Organization owned and governed by its writer and publisher members. http://www.ascap.com/