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8. The relationships between computer and sheet music: an overview
A. The transmission of the content of a sheet music
It is not that a sheet music is a perfect way to transmit music, but it is universally recognized as a communication method between musicians and most of the existing music repertory is in form of sheet music. Compared to the simple sound support, be it a vinyl or a m p 3, a sheet music has the advantage of also communicating the structure of music, so that it can be understood and played. From this viewpoint, it is a much better communication support than just listening to the sound result. One can analyze it, break it up, modify it and interpret it.
B. The fundamental difference between a sheet music and a text
An important difference may be noticed between a sheet music and a text. In a text, a word has a precise meaning, or several ones, but generally, everyone agrees on its general meaning. The word violin represents without doubt the instrument everybody knows. A word may of course contain an emotional meaning for someone or even for a group of persons. Therefore, by selecting words and building sentences and texts, writers will be able to arouse emotions in their readers, in addition to the basic meaning of each word used.
In music, it is slightly different, because a music note, a chord and a rhythm have no precise and well defined meaning. Unlike words, musical symbols do not represent a physical object or a unique idea. Therefore, they do not transmit a meaning in themselves, but sound impressions that may be felt by the listener. According to their life and music experiences, listeners may assign meanings and emotions to it. The message is here transmitted on the emotional and esthetical levels and no more at the level of semantics.
The musical language hits another sphere of influence than pure signification. A pure signification, as in saying the sentence "Yesterday I ate chicken for dinner", is not a communication that could be translated into music so that the listener could clearly attribute a unique meaning to it,while listening to it. In clear, there is no dictionary where one will find that the reality expressed by the word chicken is represented by the musical note A or by the note B. Significations are thus transmitted in the frame of the composer's creative imagination, and they will continue to rely on the subjective experience of the listener
Love, speed, enthusiasm, big spaces, sorrow, sea, woods, all these elements may all be expressed in music in a thousand different ways. The composer is able to arouse ideas and impressions in the listener by various means and sound effects. Each musical construction, as small as it can be, may then be felt, experienced and understood on a conceptual, emotional or esthetical level by the listener.
C. Structure of a sheet music software: the case of the Pizzicato music composition and notation software
After being confined in academic laboratories until the 1970s, sheet music software began to find a place in individual homes now equipped with personal computers. People rapidly appreciated their precision: nobody had to deal anymore with the reading issues related to handwritten sheet music. Let us mention one of them, a software named Pizzicato, which has thousands of users and is notably appreciated by numerous professional musicians. Pizzicato lets create sheet music from scratch or from a type of file named midi file. MIDI means Musical Instrument Digital Interface. Its purpose is to transmit the actions executed with a musical keyboard in a digital form. And finally, the user can listen to the sheet music. Listening to the sound is a real advantage over traditional sheet music, because the user is not forced to hire performers to obtain it. This is an essential asset. Since the 2010s, several online software programs also allow members of a same music group, for example students of a classroom, to quickly share the results of their encoding work. This is for example the case of a software named Smart Music.
E. Sheet music software and copyright in the United States
The Constitution of the United States was declared in effect in 1789 and the Copyright Act of 1790 was adopted on May 31 of that year. Maps, charts, and books were covered by the first Act. A more esthetic class of works, engravings, were protected in 1802, although a source states that the art of the engraver had been protected in England since 1735. However, it is certain that musical compositions embodied as sheet music were added as a protected class in the general copyright revision of 1831. Until the beginning of the twentieth century, as the technology to reproduce sheet music and also to record and play sound were quite static, the protection of sheet music publishers through law was relatively simple.
A legal issue which happened in 1908, the case of White-Smith Music Publishing versus Apollo, shows that, then, things began to change. Apollo had manufactured piano rolls capable of reproducing mechanically compositions covered by a copyright owned by the appellant. The appellant contended that the piano rolls constituted copies of the copyrighted composition and that their sale, without permission, constituted an infringement of the copyright. But the Court held that piano rolls, as well as records, were not copies of the copyrighted composition, in terms of the federal copyright statutes, but were merely component parts of a machine which executed the composition.
It is against this background that Congress passed the1909 statute. After pointedly waiting for the Court's decision in the case of White-Smith Music Publishing, the Congress determined that the copyright statutes should be amended to insure that composers of original musical works received adequate protection, to encourage their artistic and creative effort. Therefore, records and piano rolls were to be considered as copiesof the original composition they were capable of reproducing, and could not be manufactured unless payment was made to the owner of the composition copyright.
It is clear from other Court statements that the Court was sympathetic to sound recording protection, despite its contrary ruling on the basis of its interpretation of the law as written. However, it was not until 1971 that Congress passed a law naming sound recordings as a category of copyrightable works, when it became evident that record piracy was growing. In the 1976 General Revision, Congress provided for copyright of works fixed in any tangible medium of expression and defined sound recordings as works that result from the fixation of a series of musical, spoken, or other sounds, regardless of the nature of the material objects such as disks, tapes, or other records in which they are embodied.
Finally, composers and music publishers, due to technological innovation, had found economic survival under the performance rights provisions. It had become obvious that the protection of printed books from copying or reproduction was an illusory protection and was making them economically vulnerable if free use of their copyrighted material was permitted in information storage and retrieval systems.
This awareness was reinforced by the appearance of numerous sheet music software accessible on computers' desktops during the 1990s and of online sheet music software during the 2010s. And great examples of legal and fruitful collaboration between sheet music publishers and software developers may be found, like the commercial partnership initiated during the 2010s between Alfred Music, a traditional sheet music publishing house created in 1922, and the Smart Music software.
7. The birth of the lithographic technique, in direct relationship with sheet music printing
A. The first essays of Aloys Senefelder, inventor of the lithographic technique
The art of lithography was developed in 1796 by Aloys Senefelder, a professional theater writer born in Prague, who studied in Munich and who was active in this city until 1834. Because he lacked financial resources to have his plays printed on a scale, Senefelder conceived the idea of looking for a new way of printing, a cheaper one, and of associating with a friend who owned a printing press, to etch his works on copper, and then print them in the ordinary way. Senefelder used a very thin and elastic steel nib, which he had learned so well to handle, that, although it is more difficult to write on copper than on paper, he was soon in a state of quickly and accurately paint each character molded separately. However, from his first attempts, he saw that it would be impossible to write an entire page without making a few mistakes, which he would have to correct, if he did not want to make incorrect copies.
To facilitate and simplify the corrections, Senefelder imagined taking equal amounts of wax and soap with a little black smoke, a carbon based powder, mixing everything together, and dissolving this mixture in rainwater. This composition met his expectations perfectly. Thus was born this chemical ink so important for lithography, and which, later amalgamated with other ingredients, in suitable proportions, was further improved. By continuing his tests, Senefelder soon found that it was easier to write on stone than on copper, and that characters were formed much better and more easily on stone; this made him think about the means he had to use to achieve printing using an etching stone. He remembered around this time that, at the age of five or six, he had seen a musical printing press in Frankfurt or in Mainz, where the notes were engraved on a black slate.
Senefelder assumed that the attempt that had been made at that time to engrave the music on tin plates, was regarded as a secret, and had perhaps given someone the idea of testing on clay stone, but that this process had probably been abandoned, because of the extreme fragility of this material and the difficulty one may experience in engraving it, because it is a kind of stone which very quickly wears out all the tools, while tin is easier to engrave.
One day, when Senefelder was waiting for paper, Senefelder wrote on the stone he had just brushed up, serving for this purpose with its ink composed of wax, soap and black smoke. When he wanted to wipe away what he had just written, it suddenly occurred to him to see what would become of the letters he had traced with his wax ink. He coated the board with etching, and also wanted to blacken them as one blackens movable fonts, to then print them. He mixed a dose of etching with ten doses of water, and poured this mixture onto the writing board. Senefelder then examined the effect of the etching, and found that the letters had acquired a depth of about a quarter of a line. All the tests which he then made for the writings on the stone succeeded him much better than those which he had previously made in hollow. It was much easier to ink and, for printing, it did not take a quarter of the force required by the hollow method; which made besides that, in this way, the risk that the stones did break was greatly reduced.
B. Partnership between Aloys Senefelder and the composer Franz Gleissner
This way of printing was a whole new discovery, which no one had made before Senefelder. So he could hope it would get him a patent, maybe even subsidies. At the same time it occurred to him that his discovery could also be successfully applied to the printing of musical notes. He showed a few proofs to a Munich court musician named Franz Gleissner, who told him on the spot that he was ready to form a musical printing establishment with him. Senefelder eagerly accepted his offers, and they established a lithograph in 1796. The first printed work was a composition by Gleissner. Senefelder and Gleissner successfully printed different musical compositions with unequal success, both for their own account and that of a music publisher named Falger, based in Munich. This work made them imagine several kinds of presses, among which we can especially distinguish the branch press. Lithographic printing, at that time, cost five times less than copper engraving.
An educational officer responsible for publishing educational books named Steiner contacted Senefelder to print various church hymns for schools; he asked him if he could not engrave or carve in stone the music of these hymns, so that they could be printed by the ordinary printing press. Senefelder promised to try, but the depth required by the intervals and sides was much more difficult to dig on stone than on wood. In the meantime, Senefelder and Steiner decided to print the lyrics first, using a regular press, and then the musical notes, with stone boards and the lithographic press.
Experience had taught Senefelder, when he was making musical notes, that the best way to succeed was to start by tracing them back on the stone with a pencil: it was the business of Franz Gleissner, who, as a skillful musician, had acquired great perfection in this genre. A symphony composed by Gleissner was ready before Senefelder discovered a new printing method, only the title was missing, which was then engraved in stone. It produced a good effect.
Let us remark, on the technical level, the existence, in Senefelder's lithographic technique, of the note instrument, a small copper or silver pipe having, at the bottom, the shape of musical notes, and which may contain enough chemical ink to make about twenty bodies of notes. This instrument is used to draw the five lines of the notes.
C. Partnership between Aloys Senefelder and the music publisher Johann Anton André
In 1800, Senefelder had already obtained a patent in London for his invention, and a few lesser known ones. In 1802, he obtained a patent in Paris. He sent one of his brothers to this city to direct a lithograph, which however did not have the expected success. In 1803, Senefelder also requested a patent in Lower Austria, after receiving a privilege there. He had discovered the branch press the previous year, with which he could print several thousand copies of the same work in one day. This new press, combined with the new way of using stone, enabled him to expand his establishment. Senefelder took two of his brothers with him, he taught them how to write and engrave on stone, he also took two apprentices to train them in printing. At the same time, in 1799, Maximilien Joseph, IV of Bavaria granted Senefelder and Gleissner an exclusive privilege for fifteen years.
Then Johann Anton André arrived in Munich. He was a music publisher active in Offenbach and had just acquired, from his widow, Constance, the rights to print 270 handwritten compositions by Mozart, including that of the Magic Flute. This publisher read in the Munich Gazette the announcement of the privilege received by Senefelder and Gleissner; he inquired about the nature of the new method of printing with them. Senefelder and Gleissner showed him different pieces of music they had printed, and offered to visit their lithography. There, Johann Anton André could examine things himself in a little more detail. The publisher, who was one of the most key figures in the music score industry in his country at the time, and owner of a beautiful musical printing press, was delighted with the results obtained by means of lithography, and especially that by passing his hand over the notes, his fingertips were not dirty, as it often happened then with the engraving method.
The special attention with which Johann Anton André learned the smallest details made Senefelder see that he took a particular interest in his way of printing. Plates that were already written were engraved and printed in front of him, and worked perfectly. The skill with which the members of the lithography operated made it possible to print seventy-five pages in a quarter of an hour, and two at the same time. The speed with which the leaves dried, and the little color they used, all revived the interest of Johann Anton André to the highest degree.
In his enthusiasm, the publisher asked Senefelder to teach him his art in its full extent, in exchange for a substantial payment. Senefelder accepted his proposal, and agreed with him to go a few months later to Offenbach in order to establish a lithograph there. Johann Anton André used a special ink that kept particularly well there, a mixture of shellac, filler, soap made with beef fat, crystallized and purified lye and smoke black.
Senefelder left Johann Anton André to form a new establishment in Vienna with his first partner. He obtained in this capital an exclusive privilege, which he left in 1806, to a person with whom he had made a very disadvantageous contract for him, because he preferred to work tirelessly for the improvement of the lithographic technique.
6. Music engraving as an alternative to printing with the help of movable characters
LIST OF THE PRESENTATIONS ACCESSIBLE ON THIS PAGE:
The first cycle of presentations reveals the main lines of technical and technological evolution, namely innovation in the sheet music industry, from the beginning of printing.
CYCLE I: GENERAL INTRODUCTION
To allow sheet music lovers to appreciate the work of sheet music publishers, we offer them, in a few cycles of presentations, to discover the wonderful story of innovation within the sheet music industry.
TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION WITHIN THE SHEET MUSIC INDUSTRY
6. Music engraving as an alternative to printing with the help of movable characters
A. The situation at the court of King James I in 17th century England
Music engraving, in its original form, finds it roots in the beginning of the fifteenth century Europe. Previously, we saw that, during this period, sheet music printing mainly relies on two main techniques: the use of woodblocks and the usage of removable characters. But at the end of the century, occasionally, like it is the case for graphic representations like maps or various artistic works in general, copper plates are used for music, plates on which reversed sheet music are engraved by hand, before being inked to print many copies of an original sheet music. This technique obviously has its advantages: the plates can be stocked easily in a small space to be reused at any time. However, it requires to have a very skilled engraver, who also perfectly knows music. The engraver of the fifteenth century must be able to read a manuscript and to reproduce it in reverse without any error, as correction are difficult to do, if not impossible in most of the cases. And the situation will not change until several centuries. Both the hability of the hand and the eye are thus required and very important.
The engraving of music on metal plates seems to have been practised in England before it was used in Italy, or any other country. It begins during the reign of King James the First. The first music engravers, in England, are William and Robert Hole. William engraves Parthenia, a collection of pieces dedicated to the King's daughter and written by three famous composers, William Byrd, John Bull, and Orlando Gibbons. The work is published in 1611. Robert Hole engraved a volume that is quite similar. We may also notice the presence of Nicholas Laniere, an eminent musician and engraver, in the service of James the First. Laniere is the King's Master of Music between 1625 and 1666.
B. English engravers active at the beginning of the 18th century
The technique of engraving becomes popular during the eighteenth century, but slowly. Let us examine the situation in London, for instance. At the beginning of the century, there is only one engraver of music there, named Thomas Cross. The great labor of engraving music, the cost of the plates, and other incidental expenses, still make music printing with removable fonts preferable to the pocket of the publishers, although the result of printing is inferior in appearance and elegance. However, during this period, Dutch printers discover a means of softening copper so as to make it susceptible of an impression for the stroke of a hammer or a punch, the point whereof has the form of a musical note. There are many works produced by this process, and, between 1700 and 1725, these Dutch printers have de facto the monopoly of the method. The difficulty of getting music from abroad in England and the high duty on the importation of this music, are motives to reproduce the technique of the Dutch printers in Engand. The attempt includes the use of a pewter for copper, as the former material is more workable with punches than the latter. The enterprising publishers who carry this plan to a successful end are John Walsh and John Hare. John Walsh is active in London since 1695 and, in fact, he becomes successfull at the financial level because he begins to use pewter instead of copper to make the engraving work. He attracts talented and renowned composers like Handel, which commissions him to publish his opera entitled Rinaldo.
The method of engraving fixed by Walsh and Hare is used with scarcely any improvement until the nineteenth century, in England. Meanwhile, in Germany, punches with more elegant shapes are made and publishers find ways to reduce their costs. For this reason, many music books engraved and published in Germany are imported in England. However, besides the printing materials, it seems that the personal ability of the printers must also be taken into account, to make a judgment related to their work. It was said that, with the same punches, John Hare's son, who succeeded him, produced better results than his father.
C. Scottish engravers active during the 18th and the 19th centuries
James Johnson, a prolific music engraver from Edinburgh, is active during the last quarter of the eighteenth century and the first decade of the nineteenth century. He engraves numerous sheet music plates, including those of the 600 English folk songs reunited by himself and his friend, the poet Robert Burns, in an anthology named Scots Musical Museum. That anthology is published in 1797 and is made of six volumes. This is an important work, because a part of its materials influences composers like Haydn and Beethoven. The first volume notably contains compositions written by Purcell.
Let us notice that, during this period, at least in Scotland, the question of copyright is not really taken into account. The mixture of songs coming from England and Scottland increases, leading to the creation of new songs which do not belong anymore to a specific composer. Previous collectors add songs that were popular in their day, without care as to the source whence they are derived; each publisher seeking only to render his own publication more attractive than those of his predecessors. The songs of English musicians are thus included, but their names are systematically suppressed, even for living authors. And although the authorship of these songs may have been known to many at the time of publication, it soon passes out of memory.
D. Engraving, American publishers and U.S. Copyright laws in 1908
That said, copyright issues are becoming more and more important over time, in connection with the spread of engraved music plates used as the main print medium. In the nineteenth century, in Europe as in the United States, music publishers become increasingly aware of the advantages of engraving, in a sheet music industry which, at the beginning of the twentieth century, is already global. The international competition is fierce and, to see its main issues, we may examine a specific case, the revision of copyright laws made in 1908 in the United States. All the concerned bills, mainly Currier and Kittredge bills, propose to give the American engravers the monopoly of setting type, of making stereotyped plates from that type, of lithography, and of photo engraving.
It is not our purpose here to examine copyright laws in detail, but we see that, in 1908, the situation is quite complicated, in the United States, both for individual music engravers and for publishing companies. But Americans are not the only ones to complain. Apparently, during the same year, music publishers, in Germany, say that, since 1903, their engravers have less and less work too.
This specific debate around copyright laws in the United States shows the complexity of the sheet music market from the beginning of the twentieth century, all around the world, and how being provided with a good offer by qualified and well equipped music engravers can, during this period, make the difference for music publishers who pretend to position themselves within the global market.