[Tango-L] Tango music files..? anyone?

[Myk Dowling]

Jack Dylan wrote:
> Thanks for this. I must admit I'm a total duffer when it comes to computers 
> but even I managed to download the '70 Most Danced Tangos'
> 
> Is this legal? I mean, I've spent a small fortune buying CDs on-line and now
> I get 70 great tracks for free. Just doesn't seem right.

Is it legal?  Probably not, though I'm not sure what the copyright 
expiry laws are in Argentina. Throughout much of the world, the current 
law for the copyright on the composition is life of the artist plus 70 
years, which would make it very likely to still be current for most 
Tango music. The copyright on the performance, on the other hand, may be 
expired for recordings from the early 50's and before, depending on 
whether Argentina uses US- or UK-style copyright on music performances.

Can any of our Argentinian regulars find out what Argentina's copyright 
law currently says?

Is it immoral? That's a much tougher question. Partly, for me, it comes 
down to a question of where the money for those CDs you bought goes. How 
many surviving composers and performing artists are there, and are they 
actually getting the royalties? Or have their rights been long since 
bought up by an international record label?

And then of course, there is the question of whether copyright is a fair 
remuneration system at all.

Myk,
in Canberra