Music: Who Owns It, and How Much is it Worth?

           
Music is an amazing thing. It has the ability to change a person's mood, connect people, and give people something to do, whether it's listening to or playing it. Playing music can be a hobby, but it can also be a career. For me, playing music is just another hobby, but I still work hard at mastering songs, either on the flute or guitar. Even though I currently do not have a career in music, I still like to write songs to express my feelings, and if I feel like it, I will occasionally let my friends hear them for feedback. When I write or cover songs, I do not look for money, because making music is not my career, and most of the songs that I play are not my own. However, if I made music as a career, then I would expect to make money from my music, especially if I wrote all of my songs.

Inherent value is something that has innate or permanent worth. In this case, that something is music, but not all music has inherent value. For example, a piece of music that is inherently valuable is "The Star Spangled Banner" by Francis Scott Key, because it is very popular and extremely well known, and it is very original because it is the national anthem of the U.S.A.  The national anthem has been around for centuries, and it is a song that has tons of worth. Even though there have been a plethora of covers of the song, the original piece has permanent worth, or inherent value. For example, Jimmy Hendrix's unique rendition of the song at the Woodstock Music Festival was greatly appreciated, but since he did not write or sing the song, his version would not have inherent value. Since Francis Scott Key is deceased, he is no longer able to receive money for the song, but since the piece is extremely valuable, he should have received a large sum of money for it when he was alive.

Lately, the topic of music ownership has been greatly discussed, and there has been some talk about what counts as stealing music. In my opinion, if you do not pay for the music you obtain, you are stealing it. It sounds simple and a bit ridiculous, but it’s more complex than that. If you are listening to music on the radio or another music source where the music has been previously purchased, then I don’t believe that counts as stealing. If you are obtaining music by downloading it off the internet or burning CDs, etc., then I believe that counts as stealing. I don’t think it is fair for music to be stolen, because the people who make music as a career need the money. If someone says, “I like and support him/her and his/her music, but I just don’t want to spend my money on it”, then that person is clearly not as supportive as he/she says he/she is, because that person doesn’t want to help the musician with his/her career by paying for the music. Other than that, I believe that pretty much every other way of obtaining music is not considered stealing.

In conclusion, I believe that all music, even an unoriginal cover of an already bland song, has a certain value to it. Of course, not ALL music has an inherent value, but every song has the right to be produced and played. Also, if making music is someone’s career, it is EXTREMELY important to pay for the music you obtain by this person, because this is his/her occupation, and he/she needs the money to help the career. Music is incredible and worthy, and it has the right to be obtained and valued properly.