Copyright Compliance
​
Please note:  Primary responsibility for following the policies below rests with the SINGER and their teacher.  Violation of the copyright rule will result in disqualification and/or the rescinding of awards.

  • Official NATS Copyright Policy for Use of Published Music
    1. NATS encourages its members, their students, accompanists and the general population to become educated about, and to comply with, all applicable copyright laws. Reproduction of a copyrighted work constitutes copyright infringement unless a license to reproduce such work has been obtained, the use is considered fair use, the work is in the public domain, or a valid exception to copyright infringement exists.
    2. NATS requires students, teachers and other participants in NATS affiliated events, auditions and competitions to affirm compliance with the NATS Copyright Policy, and to use only authorized reproductions of copyrighted works.
  • Copyright Acknowledgement for Teachers, Singers, & Pianists
    1. Teachers will log into Auditionware to register their students as normal. As teachers register each singer, they will be asked to acknowledge the NATS Copyright Policy for each singer.  (This will simply be a box that teachers will check, right along with the singer’s Name, Category, Etc.)
    2. Once a Singer is registered for an event, the singer will receive an email from Auditionware with a link to an Acknowledgement page. (This email will go to the email entered for the singer by the teacher.  If the singer is under 18 years of age, it would be best to use a parent/guardian’s email address, as they will need to acknowledge.)  The singer (or parent/guardian) will click on the link, which will take them to the Acknowledgement, and there they will click and submit the Acknowledgement of copyright.
      1. Follow-up emails will be automatically sent from Auditionware at regular intervals leading up to an event, until the singer has submitted their copyright acknowledgement.
    3. Once registration closes for an event, each Collaborative Pianist who is playing for the event will receive an email from Auditionware with a link to an Acknowledgement page. Note: The collaborative pianist will only receive one email, regardless of the number of students for whom they are playing, rather than one email per student.  (This email will go to the email entered for the pianist by the teacher.  If the pianist is under 18 years of age, it would be best to use a parent/guardian’s email address, as they will need to acknowledge.)  The pianist (or parent/guardian) will click on the link, which will take them to the Acknowledgement, and there they will click and submit the Acknowledgement of copyright.
      1. Follow-up emails will be automatically sent from Auditionware at regular intervals leading up to an event, until the pianist has submitted their copyright acknowledgement.
    4. Teachers, Students, and Pianists all need to complete their respective acknowledgements prior to the NATS event.
  • Use of Tablets by Collaborative Pianists
    1. The use of iPads and tablets as musical scores for collaborative pianists during all levels of NATS auditions has been approved and are held to the same standards of copyright as any other musical score used for auditions.
      1. For clarification on appropriate use of tablets please visit the NATS Commonly Asked Copyright Questions for Teachers, Accompanists, and Students document located in the NATS Copyright Resource Center.​