Dear Composer or Copyright Owner,
s a composer or other copyright holder, please take time to carefully review the Creative Commons and licensing policies and guidelines.
For those uploading the first time, please remember choose the menu option "New Composition" when uploading your original works (even if they are scans of manuscripts or printouts), "New Arrangement" when uploading new arrangements, and "New Edition" when uploading new editions of public domain works. As it is normally assumed that composers and arrangers have edited their own work, please leave the "Editor" field empty unless another person has actually edited your work (in which case their name should be inserted). Note also that the English term "Editor" is not the equivalent of the French editeur or Italian editore. "Editor" refers to the person who reviewed and corrected the piece, while the French and Italian words are closer to the English word "publisher". In the "Publisher" field, please use your own full legal name, as making your scores and sound files available for free download on this site constitutes "publication" under the laws of most countries in the world. (Note that this is done automatically when using the standard upload tools).
You should be aware that Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 allows for the unrestricted copying, performance (live and broadcast) and recording of the work (including explicitly commercial use) at no charge, with no compensation or royalties payable to the composer or copyright owner for such commercial exploitation. Note also that the all of the acceptable licenses are considered to be IRREVOCABLE once a file has been uploaded with the lawful copyright owner's authorization.
You are free to change the license after upload to something more suitable. IMSLP as a matter of policy will list files under the most permissive licensing terms. Since licenses and public domain dedications are irrevocable, restrictions cannot be added later, but a more liberal license can be selected. Composers are also encouraged to make use of our new template {{NoPerf}}, which automatically places works into a new category - Unperformed Works. To add this template to your pages, simply copy and paste the little template above (curly brackets and all) into the "First Performance" field of the "General Information" section on all work pages.
Before you upload, remember these key points...
PS: For additional and more detailed explanation, please visit our Composer Portal page.
Dear Stephen,
It is generally not a good idea to split parts into individual movements. Doing so multiplies the number of downloads required and the separate files for each movement are a source of considerable annoyance and irritation for any orchestra librarian. It actually decreases the odds of someone actually performing your work. If you are a WIMA contributor, we understand that the late Mr. Icking had this bizarre policy so proceed to upload the files as separate movements - but please follow our guidelines and terminology instead of using your own. Things are ordered in a certain way for a reason. Please look over your pages, which have now been re-ordered and tagged. Also, it's always a good idea to look at some of our more popular pages (like Beethoven symphonies) to see how things are done. Learning the 'system' saves the copyright review team time and makes you work available faster. Thanks, Carolus 02:52, 25 February 2012 (UTC) (IMSLP Copyright Admin)
Mass of the Nativty is a good example of what I was mentioning above. There are 12 movements, and you already have 45 different parts files. When all 12 movements are uploaded, anyone wanting to perform the piece will have to download more than 100 files to do so, then either print them out and put together 12 sets of parts into one serviceable set, or (if they have the software) merge all your separated parts files into single files for Flute, Oboe, Violins I, etc. Take a look at what was done to the page and how the files are ordered (note we follow contemporary conventional score order), and named (we use Violins I - roman numeral and plural - because it would normally be more than one player using the part) vs. Flute (singular - because a single player would handle the part). The best way to learn how things are done is to watch what happens when something you have added has been reviewed and brought into the correct format. Thanks, Carolus 07:28, 26 February 2012 (UTC)
It is pointless to repeat the work-page title in the file descriptions. Nothing except files associated with that particular work goes on that workpage - no exceptions. Naming individual movements in file descriptions is fine and is done all the time when there separate files for each movement of a work (scores, vocal scores, sound files). Thanks, Carolus 03:31, 3 March 2012 (UTC)
For works involving an orchestra (multiple strings being the determining factor) or a large ensemble (8 players or more), we normally have the parts under a separate tab. Therefore it is redundant to include "Parts: <name of instrument>" in the file description. Likewise, the file description for a full score for such works should just read "Complete Score" as we create the "Full Scores" tab section. For choral works like masses, we also have a special tab section for "Vocal Scores" - which only appears for large choral works and operas. The publisher field should not be left empty. As a composer uploading his own work, it's best to simply put in your name. When you make a file available here, it meets the legal definition of "publication" in most countries. You're doing a good job of learning the basics of uploading. Before long all I'll have to do is tag things for approval. Thanks, Carolus 01:20, 8 March 2012 (EST)
