Musical Works, Copyright, and Generative AI: Legal Perspectives on Originality and Authorship

The use of tools powered by artificial intelligence (AI) for producing creative content has become an increasingly important aspect of modern society. Focusing on musical composition, this novel approach to understanding musical works deconstructs the compositional process into three components - the underlying work, the source material, and prospective reproductions - enabling a precise mapping of creative input within AI-assisted compositional processes and facilitating an evaluation of whether copyright protection should be granted to AI-generated music.

Drawing on a wide range of case law and analogies from traditional frameworks for assessing musical compositions in a copyright law context, the analysis suggests that copyright eligibility hinges on the specificity and precision of the instructions shaping the musical work, as well as how clearly they are reflected in the resulting composition. To this end, the author addresses the following seminal questions:

• Can AI-generated compositions constitute musical works under copyright law?

• If they can, which party or parties can claim an exclusive right to them and on what grounds?

• What are the requirements on the creative process for an AI-generated composition to qualify as a protected musical work?

• What are the pre-generation human contributions that shape or influence the musical attributes of an AI-generated or AI-assisted end result?

• How does a musical work come into being, and how should one define its contents?

• How can one define the component parts of a musical work and the compositional process in a way that accurately considers the utilisation of AI-powered creative tools?

• Under what conditions can one consider a sequence of instructions describing musical attributes to be sufficiently specific and sufficiently precisely reflected in the resulting composition to warrant copyright protection?

Practical case studies compare AI-assisted and traditional creative processes to examine the relevant legal issues. To enhance the clarity of the analysis, sheet music samples and scores are incorporated, and audio samples are available via a QR code linking to a dedicated database.

The book distinguishes itself by enhancing professional understanding of how generative AI challenges traditional copyright principles, providing clarity on originality and authorship in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. As a pioneering in-depth, structured approach to determining the role of human creativity in AI-assisted endeavours, this study offers a forward-looking perspective on how intellectual property law can adapt to evolving modes of creative production. It equips legal practitioners, scholars, creators, developers, and policymakers with analytical tools and benchmarks to assess the copyright eligibility of AI-generated works.