Style question about work relationships

MusicBrainz
1

Greetings. Some questions and thoughts about recordings-works relationships. Need your opinion about how to correctly credit and link all this stuff. I’ll describe some cases with examples i have met in my practice and say what i think about this.

So a cases:

  • Recording is a production music track which is based on classical/traditional work. Example:
    Alibi Music Library
    Click on individual track to see detailed info - note that every track has its own writer(s) and every work exists as separate entity (i.e. it registered in PRO). I suppose the same is true in case of movie or a game OST.

  • Recording is a track from movie OST, which in turn is based on cuesheet works (example:)
    Hans Zimmer Website
    Project details info block shows so-called movie cuesheet, i.e. tracklist of works that directly used in the movie, while tracks from OST - just a compilation from cuesheet works. “Album assembly” here shows just how OST is compilated.

  • Recording is a track from game OST and partially based on work from previous chapter. Example:
    Assassin's Creed Origins Original Game Soundtrack | 180694 - VGMdb
    Note the bottom line: “Ezio’s Family” originally composed by Jesper Kyd. Here are works data:
    ACE Repertory

So here are my thoughts:

  1. Link recording directly to the original classical work, while not creating a separate work. Current composer would be arranger + original composer at work level.
    “-”: These works registered in PROs and i suppose they should exist as separate works in MB as well. They seems to me like “new content” instead rearrangement of original classic + many of them are electronic versions.

  2. Add classical composer as additional composer to the new work.
    “+”: Some works in PROs already credited in this way, some list only “public domain”/“traditional” record instead certain composer, some list only current composer - so there is no single standard and i suppose its depends on publisher/label. Also such cases are also true for example for games/movies, where composer from the previous chapter is credited along with composer from the newer one.
    “-”: (imho): original composer credited along with the current one seems to me like so-composing, i.e. like authors worked together instead one just used the work of another. Also while browsing discography of the classical composer user can be surpised that he composed many “new” works in “another epoch”.

  3. Link recording to both works: newly one and the original.
    “+”: We have separate work with trailer composer while linking to the original classical work.
    “-”: Perhaps it could be hard for editor to find a correct original classical work for linking if he doesnt know repertoire too well, esp. when trailer track doesnt mention original composition. Also there probably could be a cases where original classical work doesnt exist yet in MB.
    “?”: I am not sure how would music players treat track metadata with several works assigned. I mean if in music player you have layout that show tracks by composer would the player show both composers (classical and trailer one) from the file with 2 works assigned?

What do you think?

1 Like
2

My only experience is with #3 - I probably wouldn’t link the recording to both works? Just the new one. And then link the work to the earlier work with ‘based on’.

3

Link to the work relevant to this specific recording (there’s generally only one, unless it’s a medley). Further relationships should be at the work level, between the different works. So, basically, what @aerozol said :slight_smile:

4

Ok, i see, but what do you suggest about writer credits? I presume if we dont link to both/several works, then add original writer to the main work like #2?

5

Depends on what’s credited and how. For “proper classical”, it depends - I’d generally list the original composer in an arrangement, but not in a “based on” work (so, Work “Concert Fantasia on motives from "Rigoletto"” - MusicBrainz is not credited to Verdi directly).

6

No, i mean how would you credit the first case i mentioned. Lets take this track:

“Own” track composer - Charles Berry, but the track is based on “Nutcracker”, so would you add Tchaikovsky as a second composer for this work?

7

I would only add the ‘new’ composer/arranger to the new work (unless the original composer is also credited). The original can be figured out via the ‘based on’ relationship.

But I can see how that would be annoying if you’re trying to get the original composer also added via Picard. I’m not sure if there is a way? But I’m not a big scripter.

1 Like