Legal Definitions - sound recording

Under copyright law, a sound recording refers to a creative work made up of a sequence of musical, spoken, or other types of sounds that have been permanently captured and stored in a physical or digital format. This means the sounds are 'fixed' in a way that they can be heard, reproduced, or communicated. However, it's important to note that the sounds that are part of a movie or other video production are generally not considered separate sound recordings; they are typically treated as an integral part of the larger audiovisual work itself.

Here are some examples to illustrate what constitutes a sound recording:

• A Musician's Album: When a band records their latest album in a studio, the final master tracks – whether stored as high-quality digital audio files on a server or pressed onto vinyl records – are considered sound recordings.

  This illustrates the term because it involves a series of musical sounds (the songs) that have been fixed into a tangible medium (digital files or physical records), making them reproducible and distributable.

• A Podcast Episode: An independent journalist records an interview with a public figure for their weekly podcast. The edited audio file of this interview, uploaded to a hosting service and made available for streaming or download, is a sound recording.

  This demonstrates the concept as it consists of a series of spoken sounds (the interview) that are fixed in a tangible digital medium (the audio file), allowing listeners to access it repeatedly.

• A Nature Soundscape: A sound engineer travels to a remote forest to capture ambient sounds like birdsong, rustling leaves, and a flowing stream. These recordings, compiled into a digital library for use in meditation apps or film scores, are sound recordings.

  Here, the "other sounds" (natural ambient noises) are captured and fixed into a tangible digital medium (the audio files), creating a distinct work separate from any visual component.