Paper 1: Music Sampling

Due: Friday, Feb 19. Your paper must be submitted electronically, either via email or through the Blackboard digital dropbox.

This topic is based on the following news item, from http://origin.avclub.com/articles/guns-n-roses-sued-for-uncredited-ulrich-schnauss-s,33744:

by Josh Modell October 6, 2009
According to Reuters, the British label Independiente and the U.S. arm of Domino Records have filed suit against Guns N' Roses and the band's label, Interscope/Geffen/A&M for swiping portions of compositions by semi-obscure German electronic artist Ulrich Schnauss for the Chinese Democracy track "Riad N' the Bedouins." Pitchfork has some links to listen to the tracks. Sounds to me like it's pretty clearly swiped, but I'll say this: I own and really like Schnauss' 2003 disc A Strangely Isolated Place, but I wouldn't have picked out the sample if it hadn't been pointed out. Which isn't to say he shouldn't get paid, of course.

Consider the last sentence, here: should Mr Schnauss get paid? And why? In general, when should a musician who uses "sampling" of the work of another have to pay for that right?

[Links from Pitchfork, above: Guns N' Roses, Ulrich Schnauss. At issue is the opening 10-20 seconds. It's not the best example, because it's a rather atypical sound for GnR. Note that GnR used this opening only on their CD release; I did not find it in any of their live-performance examples on YouTube.]
 
You are encouraged to approach this from the perspective of a band that has achieved modest local success but not stardom; in particular, we will suppose you do not make any money from CD sales. When using sampling, what exactly is your obligation to the original artist? Is it all about acknowledging credit for the "homage"? Or is it about paying whatever fee the original artist demands? Something in between? To what extent do you think that Fair Use arguments should enter into the picture?

You should try to consider, at least briefly, both Fair Use in United States copyright law, and also ethical obligations between musicians.

In addressing the ethical components, make it clear whether you are arguing from a utilitarian perspective (what is best for all musicians, or all people), or a deontological one (what duty do musicians (or people) owe one another).

Sampling involves taking snippets of someone else's recorded work, and reusing them in your own work, possibly with some sort of electronic modification. It can involve words, chords, notes, melody, drums, rhythm, textures, other background, or whatever, and can be done in varying lengths. More information on sampling can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampling_(music).  At least some musicians believe that Fair Use does not apply, and so permission must be secured, and so the original artist may dictate any price. However, this stands in sharp contrast to most other understandings of Fair Use, and I am not aware of any legal precedents. Note that while there is very little case law on this issue, there have been several high-profile settlements. Ignore those.

Clearly this will all depend on the extent of the sampling. Imagine that it is small; no more than a few seconds' worth and too short to contain a complete melody. Beyond that, feel free to address this point as much or as little as you wish. Your analysis may also depend on whether the sampling is of someone else's recording (the usual case), or whether you are re-creating someone else's sound or melody in your studio.

Your paper will be graded primarily on organization (that is, how you lay out your sequence of paragraphs), focus (that is, whether you stick to the topic), and the nature and completeness of your arguments.

It is essential that all material from other sources be enclosed in quotation marks (or set off as a block quote), and preferably with a citation to the original source as well.

Expected length: 3-5 pages (600+ words)