| Can I photocopy printed music?
If you wish to copy music which is still in copyright, whether by means of photocopying or otherwise, you may only do so with the prior permission of the copyright owner, with certain limited exceptions. Photocopying without obtaining such permission is an infringement of copyright and the copyright owner can sue for damages.
In certain cases limited copying is allowed, for example, for the purposes of private research and study and for use in examinations (other than those involving instrumental performance). Please check with the copyright owner in advance.
How do I know if a piece of music is protected by copyright?
(1) If the composer, writer, arranger or editor of the music is alive or died within the last 70 years the music is in copyright
(2) If the author of the words or libretto is alive or died within the last 70 years then the words are in copyright.
(3) If the printed edition was printed within the last 25 years then the edition is still in copyright. This applies, regardless of whether either the words or the music contained within that edition are in copyright or in the public domain.
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