Rights to Mr. Armstrong's music?

October 8, 2012 12:41 PM

How to I find the copyright owner of "Louis Armstrong´s 50 Hot Choruses For Cornet" which was published by the Melrose Brothers, Chicago in 1927? I tried to contact the Armstrong Museum in Queens, NY to no avail. Thanks in advance for the help.
posted by partner to Media & Arts (3 answers total)

Whether it's still under copyright or not turns on whether it was renewed when its initial term expired in 1955.
posted by Oktober at 12:52 PM on October 8, 2012

I don't know how you find the owner but I would be willing to bet that it's public domain by now.
posted by windykites at 1:20 PM on October 8, 2012 [1 favorite]

You might try contacting a small music publisher.

I know of one www.ejazzlines.com, that does a lot of jazz arrangements. I believe they do a good job of making sure royalties get back to the original artists. If they don't know the specific status of the piece you're looking at, they might know how to find out.
posted by sarah_pdx at 9:39 AM on October 9, 2012