Editing Musical composition (section)

=== In the U.S. ===
Even though the first US copyright laws did not include musical compositions, they were added as part of the [[Copyright Act of 1831]]. According to a circular issued by the [[United States Copyright Office]] on Copyright Registration of Musical Compositions and Sound Recordings, a musical composition is defined as "A musical composition consists of music, including any accompanying words, and is normally registered as a work of the performing arts. The author of a musical composition is generally the composer, and the lyricists if any. A musical composition may be in the form of a notated copy (for example sheet music) or in the form of a phonorecord (for example cassette tape, LP, or CD). Sending a musical composition in the form of a phonorecord does not necessarily mean that there is a claim to copyright in the sound recording."<!--archiveurl needed, as the new versions no longer contain this quote--><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ56a.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151006182111/http://copyright.gov/circs/circ56a.pdf|title=Copyright Registration of Musical Compositions and Sound Recordings. Circular 56A, number 56a.0509|archive-date=6 October 2015|access-date=6 October 2015|publisher= United States Copyright Office}}</ref>