abc tune search : copyright

Folk and traditional music - the genre that abc music notation was originally devised for and the main one that has adopted it - exists largely as an aural tradition.

Tunes and songs are freely shared at sessions, festivals and informal gatherings all over the world. Many contemporary musicians are prolific tune composers and song-writers and are happy for others to play and enjoy their music.

Nonetheless, here at the abc tune search, copyright is taken very seriously and the policy is that:

Copyright tunes are never knowingly returned in search results, or listed in the browsable index, unless the composer gives their explicit consent.

Excluded / included tunes

This means that any abc tune with a C:composer field (i.e. where the composer is indicated) is usually excluded.

Exceptions are those tunes:

• where the composer is recorded as traditional or anonymous
• where the copyright has now expired - for example
  • by composers known to have died more than 70 years ago (e.g. Turlough O'Carolan, 1670 - 1738; Neil Gow, 1727 - 1807; etc)
  • in collections compiled more than 70 years ago (e.g. O'Neills Music of Ireland; The Village Music Project)
• where the C:composer field has been used to record some other information (e.g. country of origin or tune type: jig, reel, etc.)
• where the composer has given their consent to have tunes listed in the tune search - see below

Making corrections

C:composer field values which fall into any of the categories above are listed at the end of this page. Please contact me if you:

• find a tune which should be excluded - i.e. one which is still in copyright, perhaps because the composer is not attributed, or incorrectly attributed, in the original abc file
• know of a tune, or even a whole collection, which could be included - e.g. a collection of traditional tunes that I don't know about
• are a composer who is happy to have their tunes included in the tune search

Please also contact me if you are the owner of an online collection and you:

• would like it included in the tune search
• would like it excluded from the tune search

Composers who have given copyright consent

The following composers have given consent for their tunes to appear in the search results and browsable index. Please enjoy their music!

• Bruce Osborne

Please contact me if you would like to be added to the list.

Non-copyright field values

The following C:composer field values have been identified as non-copyright (many of these come from collections that were compiled more than 70 years ago). However, please contact me if you believe any of these should be copyright.