Sharing music on the net

[Erik L. F. Contzius <eriklfc...>]

Two points about this debate have irritated me since its inception:

1) Naivitee does not exempt us from responsability. For example, how many
of us assume just because a popular tune is promulgated throughout a
particular society in a folk tradition that it has no composer or
copyright(sp?) holder? I believe that we, as musicians, should also be
musicologists--that is that we shouldn't assume that because many do not
know a composer that none exists. Aside from the cited I. Goldfarb Shalom
Aleikhem to which this happens often, i have also seen the group
"Beatachon" claim that their rendition of "D'ror Yikra" is traditional,
when in fact it's the "Sloop John B" and I have seen Neginah's tape "The
Bentching Tape" say the first blessing of Birkat Hamazon was 'traditional'
(the most commonly sung one), when in fact it is by Moshe Nathanson (it was
originally published in his songbook, "Shirei Manginoth").

For those of you who want to know where to find the Shalom Aleikhem from
Hava Nashira on tape, if indeed it is by "Regesh" as Cantor Jeff Klepper
has mentioned, it is by Shmuel Brazil and it is on the tape, "Regesh, Vol.
III - Shabbos" copyright 1985, Regesh Productions No. BB-1803.

2) We can argue all we want about reality, modernity, legality... but WE'RE
JEWS! and WE HAVE A RESPONSABILITY! Why have we not talked about the Jewish
response to this issue? Even when we mention 'ethically' what we should do,
as if it were matter of fact, we do ourselves an injustice. We are not folk
singers... we are JEWISH folk singers. And as such, we have a
responsability to consider "love your neighbor as yourself." Perhaps even
beyond that, for i know the argument of those who say "if people did with
my music whatever they want, that's fine with me."

by the way, when i first logged on today, i saw many responses to this
issue. I am very pleased to see many who are concerned as I am.

tiene un buen kayitz!

erik

[incidentally, as a composer, i feel there are certain pieces of mine that
i am willing to share without cost and others that I am not for reasons of
my own. One of mine is available free on my website as a GIF.]

Hazzan Erik L. F. Contzius
Omaha, Nebraska

eriklfc (at) radiks(dot)net
http://www.radiks.net/eriklfc/