Every Copy Counts Launches Copycat Challenge
The ‘Every Copy Counts’ campaign is urging teachers to play their part ensuring composers and songwriters receive the correct royalties for printed music used in schools.
Currently, only two per cent of schools in the UK are correctly logging the music they are using, creating a huge deficit in data that results in hundreds of musicians suffering financial loss.
Printed Music Licensing Limited (PMLL) has now launched ‘Every Copy Counts’ to encourage teachers to take part in the simple process of logging the music they are using in order to distribute fees fairly and accurately.
Abigail D’Amore, music education consultant leading the ‘Every Copy Counts’ campaign, said: “The Schools Printed Music Licence is provided free of charge by Government to all State schools in England, Northern Ireland and Scotland and makes copying and arranging music for educational purposes in school free of charge.
“This is hugely beneficial for schools but, in order to comply with the rules of the licence, teachers are required to log the music they are using. Unfortunately, due to a lack of awareness, this data simply isn’t being captured effectively.
“We know that teachers are under a huge amount of pressure and don’t have a lot of time, so PMLL has created a simple digital platform that allows music copied and arranged to be logged online. Teachers reporting this information can now benefit from a range of free, exclusive teaching resources, including a set of multimedia teaching materials with composing and songwriting classroom ideas, devised by teachers for teachers.”
The Schools Printed Music Licence enables schools to copy and arrange published music in hard copy and digital form. Fees paid to the PMLL are then distributed to publishers, and in turn to the creators of that music.
As part of its campaign, Every Copy Counts is launching a special event - the Annual Copycat Challenge - to inspire teachers to accurately log their data.
Abi continued: “The Annual Copycat Challenge is an online, end-of-term initiative designed to encourage the mass inputting of sheet music usage data from schools across the country, with the chance to win prizes for schools, including a ticket to the prestigious Ivor Novello Awards in 2023!
“By logging their data, teachers will gain access to a week-long programme of online events and interactive content, engaging music creators, leading educators and industry experts to bring the world of printed music to life. The Every Copy Counts team will also be on hand all week to help teachers submit their data and answer any specific questions, and we’ll also be launching our free mixed-ensemble arrangement for schools by Bobbie-Jane Gardner.”
Taking part in the Annual Copycat Challenge is simple. Just sign up to the PMLL portal via the Every Copy Counts website (www.everycopycounts.co.uk/events/the-annual-copycat-challenge-2022); collect data in your school on ‘the Big Five’ sheet music essentials for each work used in school his year (Composer or arranger; Title of work; Title of book; Music publisher; and Print publisher); and submit your data between 20 and 24 June.