POPULAR MUSIC

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26596, 20 October 1947, Page 5

POPULAR MUSIC

BAN ON RECORDINGS ACT PRECLUDES PAYMENT OF ROYALTIES Rec. 10.20 p.m. CHICAGO, Oct. 18. The president of the American Federation of Musicians, Mr James Petrillo, announced to-day that none of the union’s 225,000 members would be permitted to make recordings or tpanscriptions after December 31. The musicians, he said, were determined never again to make an instrument that would eventually destroy them. Unless radio programmes in future had “ live ” music to offer, there would not be any music. The union’s decision was the result of the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act, which prohibits the payment of royalties directly to unions. The Musicians’ Federation has been receiving royalty payments, but under the terms of the Taft-Hartley Act the arrangement cannot be renewed when the union’s present contract with the companies expires on December 31. A spokesman for the record industry said that the ban had been expected and the major companies had built up large reserves of unissued musical recordings. One spokesman estimated that two years’ supply of unissued records was on hand. Mr Petrillo said that the ban would not mean that music lovers would be unable to buy records. They would not, however, be able to get recordings of new songs or new arrangements of oid compositions. Classical records and old ‘‘jazz classics” undoubtedly would be re-issued, but devotees of popular music would have to listen to live musicians if they wanted to hear new pieces.