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A LOT of people record audio and/or video at powwows; perhaps mostly for personal use, but we really don't know in all cases where each video is going or if it may appear for sale somewhere. There are some recorders are very obviously commercial; they bought huge $2500 high resolution video cameras and sell DVD's of recent powwows on the web and at their own traveling vendor stands. I put up a simple website for a friend who does this, and I am also on a major powwow committee this year (the links to his website and our powwow's website are in my signature line).
My friend has been accused of recording drum groups without their permission. If he has actually done this (and for all I know he very well could have), then he has made a big mistake and I told him this. Or has he? This thread is not here to defend or justify his business specifically, but to try to address the conflicts that are cropping up due to businesses like his and his competitors.
We shouldn't just say, "There is no problem; let's just live with it until we all start taking each other to court." There IS a problem. Certain drum groups are having to ask specific recorders never to record them under any circumstances; some recorders believe they are under the umbrella of their paid vendor fee to carry on their businesses. I am attempting to present sensible arguments blaming either the recorders for their own actions or the committees for failing to include recording policies (or prohibitions) in their rules, in order to get people thinking about these situations and how they should be addressed.
SCENARIO BLAMING RECORDERS:
Drums (or in some cases, a publisher on their behalf) own their songs and invested their own creativity, time and effort into developing and practicing the songs for public presentation. It is tradition to at least shake hands and offer tobacco to ask permission to record someone's performance; money negotiations may follow. Recorders who sell homemade video's or DVD's are stealing from the drum groups and dancers. The answer is obvious: recorders alone are responsible for wrongdoing, since it is their own direct action.
SCENARIO BLAMING POWWOW COMMITTEES:
A recorder operates a business as a powwow vendor. Paying their vendor fee and being accepted as an authorized vendor can grant them the right to operate their business and perform all activities not specifically prohibited by the powwow committee's vendor policies; this can include recording live music and dance for resale. The powwow committee pays the drum groups to perform, and also either pays the dancers to perform or offers them the opportunity to compete for pay; this buys the powwow committee the right to set its own policies for drums and dancers and require them to grant permission for committee-authorized recordings. The answer is reasonably obvious through examining the business relationships between committee, drums, dancer, and vendors: powwow committees are at fault whenever they fail to (1) provide for, or (2) explicitly prohibit, commercial recording of drums and dancers. BTW this scenario does NOT account for people who do NOT pay any fees OR even ask permission from the powwow committee OR the performers.
So now I turn to all of you, my friends and rivals alike in the PW.com community, asking you to carefully consider both of these scenarios and others of your own. Should recording be banned outright, or can it be accommodated as a legimate fees-paid powwow vending business? I personally believe the powwow committees themselves are fully capable of dealing with this situation, since they have final authority to set conditions for vendors, drums and dancers who wish to participate in the a given powwow.
My own idea:
Since different kinds of vendors often pay different fees (food vendors sometimes pay more than arts and crafts vendors for example), what if vendors who record drums and dances for profit pay a "recording business" vendor fee in exchange for specific royalty-paid agreements with participating performers (lump sum by the powwow committee as part of drum pay)? I understand some powwows are already doing this, and I think it could work out very well.
Thoughts???
My friend has been accused of recording drum groups without their permission. If he has actually done this (and for all I know he very well could have), then he has made a big mistake and I told him this. Or has he? This thread is not here to defend or justify his business specifically, but to try to address the conflicts that are cropping up due to businesses like his and his competitors.
We shouldn't just say, "There is no problem; let's just live with it until we all start taking each other to court." There IS a problem. Certain drum groups are having to ask specific recorders never to record them under any circumstances; some recorders believe they are under the umbrella of their paid vendor fee to carry on their businesses. I am attempting to present sensible arguments blaming either the recorders for their own actions or the committees for failing to include recording policies (or prohibitions) in their rules, in order to get people thinking about these situations and how they should be addressed.
SCENARIO BLAMING RECORDERS:
Drums (or in some cases, a publisher on their behalf) own their songs and invested their own creativity, time and effort into developing and practicing the songs for public presentation. It is tradition to at least shake hands and offer tobacco to ask permission to record someone's performance; money negotiations may follow. Recorders who sell homemade video's or DVD's are stealing from the drum groups and dancers. The answer is obvious: recorders alone are responsible for wrongdoing, since it is their own direct action.
SCENARIO BLAMING POWWOW COMMITTEES:
A recorder operates a business as a powwow vendor. Paying their vendor fee and being accepted as an authorized vendor can grant them the right to operate their business and perform all activities not specifically prohibited by the powwow committee's vendor policies; this can include recording live music and dance for resale. The powwow committee pays the drum groups to perform, and also either pays the dancers to perform or offers them the opportunity to compete for pay; this buys the powwow committee the right to set its own policies for drums and dancers and require them to grant permission for committee-authorized recordings. The answer is reasonably obvious through examining the business relationships between committee, drums, dancer, and vendors: powwow committees are at fault whenever they fail to (1) provide for, or (2) explicitly prohibit, commercial recording of drums and dancers. BTW this scenario does NOT account for people who do NOT pay any fees OR even ask permission from the powwow committee OR the performers.
So now I turn to all of you, my friends and rivals alike in the PW.com community, asking you to carefully consider both of these scenarios and others of your own. Should recording be banned outright, or can it be accommodated as a legimate fees-paid powwow vending business? I personally believe the powwow committees themselves are fully capable of dealing with this situation, since they have final authority to set conditions for vendors, drums and dancers who wish to participate in the a given powwow.
My own idea:
Since different kinds of vendors often pay different fees (food vendors sometimes pay more than arts and crafts vendors for example), what if vendors who record drums and dances for profit pay a "recording business" vendor fee in exchange for specific royalty-paid agreements with participating performers (lump sum by the powwow committee as part of drum pay)? I understand some powwows are already doing this, and I think it could work out very well.
Thoughts???
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