Sawkins v Hyperion Records Ltd [2005] EWCA Civ 565

• Claimant, a musicologist, did research into the out of copyright music of a French composer from 1600s, Lalande.

• Claimant had found the music, made corrections and additions to pieces to make them playable, amended bass lines and corrected wrong notes.

• Defendant, Hyperion, released an album upon which recordings of Lalande’s work based upon Claimant’s scores had been made.

• Defendant paid Claimant a fee for providing the scores, but refused to pay royalties on grounds that an editor had not created a ‘musical work’.

• Held:

First line of reasoning

• Subsistence of copyright requires an assessment of the whole of work over which copyright is claimed.

• ‘Musical works’ includes not only the music, but any other elements which contribute towards sound of music when played

  • Thus the tempos, performing indications could be covered by musical copyright.

  • Provided they are a product of Claimant’s ‘effort and skill’