Yesterday night I went for a drink with a friend in a local bar. We stayed until closing time, and when we finally got up to the counter to pay I took the chance to ask the owner if he would be interested in having me play some music one night.
What followed was a 30 minute long discussion about the ridiculous state of portuguese legislation when it comes to music licensing.
You see, in Portugal 2010 when an establishment (cafe, bar, disco, restaurant and even your wedding) wants some music to entertain its guests, whether it be recorded or live, it needs some form of license. I suppose this is the case in some countries. The UK government is proposing exemption of such license to small live music venues. I think this is a great step in the right direction so I hope it all goes ahead.
Today I tried to read up on the rules the landlords must obide to. And the conclusion? Well, as in most cases when I read up on legislation, it's a fucking mess.
If you own a bar, and want to host a one-off live music show. You need a license. My impression is it has to be done for every single show, but it might just be a monthly or yearly deal. It gets really complicated when you're dealing with recorded media like if you want to put some ambient music, since pirated cd copies and even dubious mp3 sources are pretty widespread. But I don't want to go into the whole copyright war discussion, I'd rather just touch on the unrecorded topic - i.e. live music.
First of all, I don't see how this license benefits the wider community, not to mention the performing artist. To me it's just another way authorities have found to tax the working people, yet this time it's having a direct consequence on an essential element of human culture - music.
If the artist was a local bob dylan tribute genius, then he (or the bar owner) would have to write a letter to the portuguese author's society (SPA), fill in a form and state EXACTLY what songs were going to be covered. Then pay for that. This is ludicrous!!! Surely, if anything the tribute guy is helping promote bob dylan and the good name of folk! Making people remember what a genius he was and perhaps even triggering them to purchase a "blowing in the wind" track when they get back home! Personally I'd look it up on spotify but whatever.
I shouldn't even be making a monetary point. This isn't about money. This should be about music, art, creativity, culture, sharing of a passion within your community.
Oh and I forgot to mention, prior to all of this of course you would have to get your premises and equipment checked by IGAC, who decides whether or not the environment, neighbourhood, and equipment is suitable...
During the conversation I had with the owner of the bar he told me that he had possession of all the licenses required at one point in the past. However, the effort and cost of such outweighed the benefits of having live music. So he stopped bothering. The location of the bar seems to be propitious to frequent hassle from inspectors and so it is not even something worth risking.
You would think that, in the world we live in, musicians, poets and artists alike would be allowed to provide some ambience or life into an environment. To share their art without being suffocated by the red tape of burocracy - designed for a select few to leech their livelihoods from the sweat of others.
So, the final question... Am I or am I not going to play in this bar?
Well, yes, I am. But don't tell anyone.
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