It is sometimes easy to lose sight of the very people who are at the heart of the creative process and whose interests are profoundly affected by legislation on intellectual property rights. Composers, songwriters and performing artists need freedom to create and live from their work; this freedom is crucial to maintaining our rich E
uropean cultural heritage.
With this in mind IMRO and The International Confederation of Music Publishers (ICMP) hosted a networking event in the European Parliament in Brussels on 13th November. The event was attended by Miriam Harkin MEP, Mairead McGuinness MEP, Liam Aylward MEP, Jim Higgins MEP, Gay Mitchell MEP and Pat The Cope Gallagher MEP.
The gathering provided a platform for music creators and their representative bodies to connect directly with European legislators to enable them to highlight the many challenges currently facing the creative community. IMRO Chairman, Keith Donald highlighted the lack of respect that is widely felt by many creative people in music, film, newspapers, literature and software because their work can now be so easily copied and stolen. He emphasised the need for regulation and a worldwide strategy that allows for technical innovation while not diminishing creators’ rights. The event concluded with a world premiere of a new work, which Keith Donald composed especially for the occasion.
