Copyright - Terms of Use

Exodus 20:15: You shall not steal. (ESV)
The music, lyrics, arrangements and scores on this site are all copyrighted material.  Sadly, many people have no idea what this means and violation of copyrights happens all the time.  Contrary to popular belief, you cannot just copy a piece of music, even if you use it for charity or a church service.  So what is copyright and what does it take to adhere to copyright law?

Copyright is the legal right granted to an author, composer, playwright, publisher, or distributor to exclusive publication, production, sale, or distribution of a literary, musical, dramatic, or artistic work. The person owning the copy right can grant permission to make copies or exploit the relevant work. Works granted copyright are protected by law for the lifetime of the author or creator and for a period of 50 years after his or her death. As soon as the work is “fixed in a tangible medium from which it can be reproduced” it is protected by law.  All our songs fit this description.

If you pay the fee and download an mp3 of one or our songs you obtain a license to play the song in a private setting.  You do not have a license to copy the song, or to play it at a place of business.  You cannot play it in a coffee house or use it as background music for the church answering machine. The same applies if you purchase a CD.  If you want to play a CD or song in a commercial setting, you need a license from SOCAN (ASCAP in the US).  SOCAN is then supposed to pay the songwriters for the public performance of their songs.  If you play the CD at church, the church should inform CCLI when it files its report to CCLI.

If you download a music score or lead sheet, you are licensed to use this music in a private setting or at a venue that does not charge money. You are licensed to play the song at a church, but we ask that you report such use to the CCLI or equivalent national organization.  If you use a song and perform it with four musicians, you should not make photocopies, but download four copies.  We give you the option of downloading multiple copies, so that you do not have to pay four times the full fee.  If your church has a music library where it keeps sheet music, you should keep the receipt for multiple copies for government audit purposes.

If you would like to make a recording our one of our songs, you need to get our permission to do so.  Recording a song without permission is a violation of copyright.  If you are recording for commercial purposes, you are supposed to share revenue with the composer or songwriter of the song.

You cannot change the lyrics or arrangement of our songs and perform them in public, without permission from the songwriter.  Changing a song is a violation of copyright.  This also applies to translations of our songs into a different language.  If you want to use or change our songs, please send us an email.  In most cases we will be happy to work out a deal, or give permission for free.

The mere fact that our songs are available on the Internet does not mean that they are in the public domain. The public domain is the vast collection of creative works that are not subject to anyone's copyright, so anyone, anywhere may freely use them.  Some of our songwriters have used tunes or lyrics that are in the public domain, but once they have made new arrangements or settings, those arrangements or settings are subject to copyright.  Our works will enter into the public domain 50 years after their songwriter dies.  At this point we hope and trust this will happen in the very distant future.