23rd June 2022, 11:18 AM
(23rd June 2022, 10:20 AM)Northadox Wrote: these guys went ahead and generated all (legally distinguishable) permutations of melodies and fixed them to a physical medium, granting them copyright over them, and then they released them into the public domain (well, with a public domain equivalent license).
the need for something like this is just a small part of why I think the current state of copyright law is BEYOND cringe. it is the most cringy cringe set of laws written down in the books. not only does it last an ungodly amount of time, the line between infringement and homage is blurred, and those with enough money can squash anyone who dares oppose their monopoly. not only has it stifled culture and preservation, its powers have been bloated to such an extent that it can be used as a tool of censorship and even restrict your rights (see the DMCA's anti-circumvention clauses, DRM or DIgital Restrictions Management in general, etc.)
but yes as for melodies, there's only so many ways you can arrange a melody, but music can be further distinguished by instrumentation, rhythm, pitch, tempo, etc. will we run out of melodies? probably, but I think you can still vary up music in a lot of different ways.
This was really interesting to listen, too. In a way, I can understand why they went ahead and mathematically generated every possible melody that's ever been written. Their goal seems to be to prevent people from stumbling upon a lawsuit for accidentally copying someone's song. On the other hand, I can understand your point of view as well. Especially the way the copyright laws are setup in the music industry.
All those court fees that you have to pay, just to sue someone, regardless of whether you win or not, is outrageous and preposterous. Also yes, I agree. There are definitely different ways you can arrange music by instrumentation, rhythm, pitch, tempo, etc. As a music composer, my biggest fear is getting sued by an unknown artist for something that's very similar to theirs.
(23rd June 2022, 10:45 AM)Mystery Wrote: I absolutely do, because it's already happened before.
Here's an example:
Take a Dive, produced in 1999: https://youtu.be/Z7drHJ71rIw?t=17
I Gotta Feeling, produced in 2009: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSD4vsh1zDA
The person who created Take a Dive, Bryan Pringle, sued The Black Eyed Peas for infringing on his song, but he lost the case because he didn't have "enough proof".
Want to know the really screwed up part? Bryan Pringle was ordered to pay THEM a sum of a million dollars for the court costs.
It just shows that the justice system has failed us on many occasions, but that's a topic for another day.
I can certainly see where the song has some similarities. Like the chord progressions for instance. But if the rhythm and instrumentation is different, then that's another story. Also, yeah that is really screwed up. Those court cases don't play around, period. That's what THIS guy was just talking about.
