Circular 56A Copyright Registration of Musical Compositions and Sound Recordings

CIRCULAR

56A

Sound recordings and musical compositions are considered

two separate works for copyright purposes. Even though

a sound recording is a derivative work of the underlying

musical composition, a copyright in a sound recording is not

the same as, or a substitute for, copyright in the underlying

musical composition. The chart that follows demonstrates

the differences between these two types of works.

Musical

Compositions

Sound

Recordings

What

is it?

Music

(melody, rhythm, and/

or harmony expressed

in a system of musical

notation) and

accompanying words

(lyrics)

Fixation of a

series of sounds

(e.g., a particular

performance)

Who is the

author?

Composers

Lyricists

Songwriters

Performers

Producers

Sound Engineers

How is it

fixed?

Copy

(sheet music, either

print or digital such

as pdf)

Phonorecord

(mp3, CD, LP)

Phonorecord

(mp3, CD, LP)

This circular explains the dierence, for

compositions and sound recordings

and provides information on

registering both types of works either

separately or on one application.

For specic information about

this topic, see Chapter 800 of the

Compendium of U.S. Copyright

Practices, Third Edition.

For

registration of sound recordings that

do not contain musical compositions,

or for registration of sound recordings

on a separate application from musical

compositions, see Circular 56.

Musical Compositions

and Sound Recordings

Does the owner have the exclusive right to…

Musical

Compositions

Sound

Recordings

reproduce the work? Yes Yes

prepare derivative works? Yes Yes

distribute the copies or phonorecords of the work to the

public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental,

lease, or lending?

Yes Yes

perform the work publicly? Yes Only by means

of a digital audio

transmission

display the work publicly? Yes No

A registration for a musical composition covers the music and lyrics (if any) embodied in

that composition, but it does not cover a recorded performance of that composition. Likewise,

a registration for a sound recording of a performance does not cover the underlying musical

composition. For example, the composition “Respect” and a recording of Aretha Franklin singing

“Respect” are two distinct works. The composition itself (i.e., the music and lyrics) is a musical

composition, and a recording of an artist performing that composition is a sound recording.

Determining Whether a Musical Composition and a Sound Recording Can Be

Registered with One Application

Since a musical composition and a sound recording are distinct works, separate registration

applications generally should be submitted for each work. However, you may use one standard

application to register a sound recording and an underlying musical composition when (1) the

musical composition and sound recording are embodied in the same phonorecord and (2) the

claimant for both the musical composition and sound recording are the same.

Examples

• When an artist performs and records a composition owned by someone else, the artist or

artist’s label (if appropriate) would submit an application for the recording only. For specific

guidance, see Copyright Registration of Sound Recordings (

Circular ).

• When a songwriter creates a composition that someone else records, the songwriter or

songwriter’s publisher (if appropriate) would submit an application for the musical

composition only. For specific guidance, see Copyright Registration of Musical Compositions

(

Circular ).

• When a songwriter performs and records the songwriter’s own composition, the songwriter

may submit one application for both the composition and recording.

• When a record company owns both a composition and a recording of that composition, it may

submit one application for both the composition and recording.

• When a record company owns both a composition and a recording of that composition,

and distributes the works to the public as both sheet music and an album at the time of

registration, it should submit two separate applications, with a sheet music deposit for the

music composition and a recording deposit for the sound recording.

Even though it is possible for some applicants described above to register the musical

composition and sound recording on one application, it is very important to follow the instructions

below in order to make sure both works are included on the application. Applicants may always

choose to register sound recordings and musical compositions on separate applications.

:

You may register one sound recording and the underlying musical composition using the

Single Application, a streamlined version of the Standard Application, but only if you meet all three

of the following conditions: (1) the composition and the sound recording are embodied in the same

phonorecord, (2) the author is the only performer featured in the recording, and (3) the author

is the only copyright owner of both works. For more information about these requirements and

procedures, see Using the Single Application (Circular ).

Example: Anne Smith submits a Single Application to register the sound recording and musical

composition as the sole owner of copyright of both works. The deposit she submits is a

recording of her solo performance of the composition.

Completing the Online Application for Musical Compositions and Sound Recordings

Mistakes in applications lead to delays in registration, so it is important to complete the application

accurately. Instructions for completing the Standard Application appear in the “help” text that

accompanies the application. Here are some tips regarding common points of confusion when an

application includes both a sound recording and a musical composition.

Type of Work

At the beginning of the application, select the

“Sound Recording” option on the “Type of

Work” screen. The questions presented in the

application are based on the type of work you

select, and if you select the wrong option you

will need to start over.

Title

Provide each title exactly as it appears on the work itself, identifying album and track titles using the

title types as shown above. If you are registering one sound recording or one musical composition,

enter one title as “Title of work being registered.”

Publication

• Publication occurs when phonorecords of a work are distributed to the public by sale; transfer

of ownership; or by rental, lease, or lending. Offering to distribute phonorecords to a group

of persons for the purpose of further distribution or the purpose of publicly performing the

work also constitutes publication. A public performance does not—in and of itself—constitute

publication.

• If the work has not been published, answer “no” to the publication question.

• If the work has been published, answer “yes” to the publication question and give the date

when and nation where the phonorecords were first distributed to the public or first offered to

a group of persons for further distribution or public performance.

Year of Creation

• The year of creation is the year in which the version of the work to be registered was first fixed

or recorded in any other tangible form. When a work is written or recorded over a period of

time or constitutes a new version of an earlier work, give the year of completion of the final

work or new version.

Author

• On the Author screen, name the author(s) of the sound recording(s) and musical

composition(s) being registered. The author of a sound recording is the performer(s) featured

in the recording and/or the producer(s) who captured and/or manipulated or edited the

sounds that appear in the final recording. The author of a musical composition is the person

who created the music and/or lyrics.

• There is also the possibility that the sound recording (and/or musical composition) were works

made for hire. The applicant, not the U.S. Copyright Office, must determine whether a work

meets the statutory definition of a work made for hire. The two types of works that can be

considered a work made for hire are: (1) works prepared by an employee within the scope of

his or her employment; or (2) certain types of specially commissioned works, outlined in the

statute, where the parties signed a written agreement that the work was a “work made for hire.”

If the work was created as a work made for hire, give the name of the employer, not the person

who actually created the music and/or lyrics and sound recording. For more information on

works made for hire, see Works Made for Hire (

Circular ).

Claimant

• A sound recording and musical composition can only be registered together if the same person

or entity is named as the copyright claimant for both works. For purposes of registration, the

claimant may be the author of both the musical composition and the sound recording, or a

party that owns the copyright in both works.

• If the claimant is not the author of either the musical composition or the sound recording, the

applicant must also provide a transfer statement by checking one of the boxes (e.g., by written

agreement, by inheritance, etc.) or by explaining how the claimant obtained the rights in the

work in the space provided.

Type of Authorship

Limitation of Claim

• Complete this space if the work being registered contains an appreciable amount of material that

» was previously published

» was previously registered with the U.S. Copyright Office

» is in the public domain

» is not owned by the claimant named in the application

Leave this space blank if the work does not contain an appreciable amount of any of this kind of

material.

Submitting the Works to the Copyright Oce

To register your sound recording and musical composition, you must send the works to the

cannot be returned.

When registering a sound recording and musical composition that are unpublished or published

solely in a digital form, the Copyright Office strongly encourages you to upload the deposit as a

digital file through the online registration system instead of submitting a physical phonorecord,

such as a CD, flash drive, or other physical storage device. Each file must be uploaded in an

acceptable file format, and each uploaded file must not exceed 500 MB in size. You may compress

the files to fit within that size limit.

When registering a sound recording and musical composition published in a physical format,

such as a compact disc or LP, you should submit two copies of the work in the physical format, even

if there is a corresponding digital version. To submit physical copies of your work after completing

an online application, you should print a shipping slip from the bottom of the “Submit Your Work”

screen and send the shipping slip and deposits in the same package to the address given on the

shipping slip. To submit a physical copy (or copies) of your work with a paper application, complete

Form SR and submit the deposit in the same package with the application and the filing fee.

If the sound recording has been published in the United States in multiple physical formats at the

time of registration, you will need to comply with the “best edition” requirement by sending the two

copies of the “best” edition. The “best” edition generally will be the highest quality edition that has

been publicly distributed in the United States. The Library of Congress has identified hierarchical

criteria for what constitutes the highest quality edition for sound recordings:

Use this space to describe

the musical composition

authorship (“music,” “lyrics,”

musical arrangement,” etc.)

Check this box

to describe your

sound recording

authorship.

1. Compact disc

2. Vinyl disc

3. Open-reel tape

4. Cartridge tape

5. Cassette tape

For example, if the work was published both on compact disc and vinyl disc before the date of

the deposit, you should submit two CDs rather than vinyl discs.

Registering Multiple Musical Compositions and Sound Recordings

on One Application

To register multiple sound recordings and musical compositions together on one application, they

must qualify for group registration, as a collective work, or unit of publication. This section provides

specific guidance for registering musical compositions and sound recordings using these methods.

For more general information regarding multiple work registration, see Multiple Works (

Circular ).

Group Registration of Unpublished Works

An applicant may register up to ten unpublished sound recordings and the underlying musical

works using the online group registration option, provided that the musical compositions and

sound recordings were created by the same author or authors and all of the authors are named as

When registering multiple musical works and sound recordings using the group registration

option, provide a title for each of the individual works within the collection.

Example One

Three unpublished compositions were written and performed by Jim, Pam, and Dwight.

Assuming there was no transfer of ownership, the authors and owners of all three

compositions and sound recordings are the same, and the compositions may be registered

using the group registration option.

Example Two

Three unpublished compositions were written by Jim and Dwight: Composition 1 was

performed by Jim; Composition 2 was performed by Jim; Composition 3 was performed

by Dwight. Jim and Dwight may register the three unpublished compositions, but not the

three sound recordings, on one group application. Jim may register the sound recordings

for Composition 1 and Composition 2 on one group application, while Dwight registers the

sound recording for Composition 3 on a separate application.

Collective Work

A collective work is a compilation in which a number of contributions, constituting separate

and independent works in themselves, are assembled into a collective whole. The “authorship”

in a collective work comes from the original selection, coordination, and arrangement of the

independent works included in the collective work.

Under the Copyright Act, a collective work is considered one work for purposes of registration. A

registration for a collective work covers the copyrightable authorship in the selection, coordination,

or arrangement of the work. A registration for a collective work also covers the individual

copyrightable works that are contained within the collective work if (1) the collective work and the

individual works are owned by the same party, (2) the individual works have not been previously

published or previously registered, and (3) the individual works are not in the public domain.

Accordingly, an applicant may use one application to register a number of musical compositions

and sound recordings as a collective work if the applicant owns the musical compositions and sound

recordings, selected and arranged the musical compositions and sound recordings into a collective

whole, and the musical compositions and sound recordings have not been previously published or

previously registered.

For example, a CD album with multiple tracks that embody musical compositions and sound

recordings is considered a collective work. If the person or entity selecting, coordinating, or

arranging the musical compositions and sound recordings on the album also owns the sound

recordings, which were not previously published or registered, then the album and sound

recordings may be registered with one application as a collective work. If that party also owns the

musical compositions, which were not previously published or registered, then the collective work

registration would also extend to the musical compositions.

By contrast, if the copyright owner of the musical composition is not the copyright owner of the

sound recordings, the musical compositions and sound recordings must be registered separately.

If an author only selects or arranges the songs on an album, but is not the copyright owner of the

component sound recordings or the musical compositions, or if those recordings or compositions

were previously published or registered, that author may still file an application for a collective

work covering only the selection, coordination, and arrangement of the songs on the album. This

might occur, for example, in the case of a “best of ” album or a movie soundtrack album. But in

this situation, the registration in the collective work would not extend to the individual sound

recordings or the musical compositions on the album.

Example

An artist wrote and performed multiple tracks for a published album and determined how to

arrange the compositions on the album. The artist can register this work on one application

as a collective work. The claim may include the individual musical compositions and sound

recordings as well as the selection, coordination, and arrangement of the tracks on the album.

Unit of Publication

The Copyright Office has a narrow registration accommodation for units of publication. A unit of

publication is a physical package that contains a number of separately fixed works that have been

physically bundled together for distribution to the public as a single, integrated unit. The unit of

publication accommodation is meant to solve a very particular problem: the burdens that would

arise if applicants were required to submit, and the Office were required to process, multiple copies

of the same product in order to register different copyrightable elements of that product.

An applicant may register a number of works as a unit of publication only if:

• All of the copyrightable elements are recognizable as self-contained works.

• All of the works claimed in the application are first published as a single unit on the same date.

• The copyright claimant for all of the works claimed in the unit is the same.

• The unit and all of the works within the unit are distributed in a physical format.

• The unit contains an actual physical copy or phonorecord of all the works.

• The unit is distributed to the general public.

In the context of music albums, a registration relying on the unit of publication option may also

extend to the copyrightable text, artwork, and photographs that appear in the liner notes for the unit.

When registering these types of works, include a brief statement describing the works in the “Other”

field on the Author screen using the specific terms, such as “artwork,” “photographs,” and “text of

liner notes.” Please note that names and titles of tracks are not copyrightable so the applicant should

not assert a claim in “text of liner notes” if the names and titles of tracks are the only text present in

the unit of publication.

All of the above-mentioned conditions must be met for an applicant to use the unit of publication

option. If any of the compositions were published individually, and not within the unit of publication,

then the unit of publication option cannot be used to register those works. Similarly, an applicant

cannot use the unit of publication option if the tracks, cover art, and/or liner notes are owned by

different parties, or if one or more of the works was published on a different date or in a different

unit of publication.

Example

A CD album with two tracks that embody musical compositions and sound recordings along

with an insert containing text and artwork is considered a unit of publication when they are

distributed to the general public as a single, integrated unit. If the copyright owner of the text

and artwork is the same as the copyright owner of the two musical compositions and sound

recordings, the musical compositions, sound recordings, text and artwork may be registered

together with one application.



1. This circular is intended as an overview of the distinction between musical compositions and

sound recordings. The authoritative source for U.S. copyright law is the Copyright Act, codied in

Title 17 of the United States Code. Copyright Oce regulations are codied in Title 37 of the Code of

Federal Regulations. Copyright Oce practices and procedures are summarized in the third edition

of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Oce Practices, cited as the Compendium. The copyright law,

regulations, and the Compendium are available on the Copyright Oce website at www.copyright.gov.

U. S. Copyright Office · Library of Congress · 101 Independence Avenue SE · Washington, DC 20559 · copyright.gov

CIRCULAR 56A REVISED: 03/2021 PRINT: 00 /0000 — 0,000

For Further Information

By Internet

The copyright law, the Compendium, electronic registration, application forms, regulations,

and related materials are available on the Copyright Office website at

www.copyright.gov.

By Email

To send an email inquiry, click the Contact Us link on the Copyright Office website.

By Telephone

For general information, call the Copyright Public Information Office at (202) 707-3000 or

1-877-476-0778 (toll free). Staff members are on duty from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, eastern time,

Monday through Friday, except federal holidays. To request application forms or circulars by

postal mail, call (202) 707-9100 or 1-877-476-0778 and leave a recorded message.

By Regular Mail

Write to

Library of Congress

U.S. Copyright Office

Outreach and Education Section

101 Independence Avenue,

SE #6304

Washington, DC 20559-6304