Every fall, I watch at least one good show stall for the same dull reason. The concept is locked, the students are excited, the drill is coming together, and nobody has applied for the licenses.
Marching band copyright licensing is the least fun part of building a show, so it’s easy to put off. It’s also the step most likely to derail everything else. This guide covers how it works, who does what depending on the package you picked, and how to handle it yourself if that’s your route.
The Short Version
- Every piece in your show needs a license from its copyright holder.
- Your licenses have to be approved before I start writing. Your music is delivered once they’re fully paid.
- The licensing should begin the moment you accept your quote. Approvals could happen overnight – but they could also take weeks. Don’t wait on this one.
A license only counts as acquired when it’s approved and paid. Keep that sentence in mind, and the rest of this page gets easier.
Which Path Are You On?
Your quote included one of three copyright options. Here’s what each one means in practice.
Waive Copyright Support means you handle licensing yourself. You apply, you pay the licensing fees, and you send me the signed licenses and proof of payment.
With the Copyright Acquisition Package, I handle the applications and monitor for approval. You pay for the licenses once they’re approved.
With the Copyright Full Service Package, I apply, and I pay the license holders on your behalf. You approve two estimates along the way and then send me payment for the fees.
Jump to your section: Full Service, Acquisition, or handling it yourself.
If You Choose Full Service
This is the easy button. I do the work, and you get back to teaching. Here’s how it goes:
- Once we settle your repertoire, I apply for the licenses, most likely through Tresona Music.
- I email you an early estimate covering the expected licensing fees, any processing fees, and my full-service package fee. I’ll ask you to sign a short acknowledgment that you received it.
- I monitor the approval process and tell you right away if we hit a hiccup.
- When your licenses are approved, I send a final estimate in the form of a quote. You accept it to confirm we’re moving forward, and I confirm I’ve received your licensing package fee (a PO works too).
- I pay for the licenses on your behalf, and you send me payment to cover those fees.
You approve an early estimate, approve a final estimate, and send payment. I reach out at every step, so you don’t have to keep track of anything on your end.
If You Choose Acquisition
With the Copyright Acquisition Package, I do the searching, applying, and follow-up. Your part is paying for the licenses. I’ll keep you posted as approvals come in, and you pay the licensing fees directly.
The one thing that slows Acquisition projects is a gap between approval and payment. Approval lets me start writing, but payment is what releases your music, so paying promptly protects your delivery date.
If You’re Handling Licensing Yourself
If you waived copyright support, licensing is yours to run. It’s more manageable than it looks, and the steps below are how most directors do it. Approved, signed licenses let me start writing. Proof of payment lets me release your music to you once written.
Start With Tresona
The simplest way to secure licenses is to use an intermediary between you and the copyright holders. Tresona Music is the one directors use most, and the one I reach for. Their online system makes finding, applying for, tracking, and paying for licenses reasonably simple.
The trade-off is cost. Tresona charges a service fee on top of the licensing fee, and it can add to the total.
Here’s the good news. You can make an account, apply for licenses, and wait for approval before paying a single cent. If you’re unsure about a selection, apply anyway. If you change your mind, ask them to delete the request before you pay the licensing fee.
Start by “Requesting your License”
The hardest part really is knowing where to start. Start by clicking “Request License” or “Request Arrangement License”. From there, you’ll go through a series of questions that you can answer using mostly common-sense logic. You’ll need to select your specific ensemble or organization in the Tresona system. If you’ve never requested a license through Tresona before, you’ll need to create it first. The process is fairly simple. Just follow the step-by-step instructions on the screen.
Search for your Title
Next, you want to search Tresona for the song title of the specific source material you’re using. My name won’t appear because you’re not licensing the arrangement from me. You’re licensing the source material that I’m arranging.
Search by song title first. If you can’t find it, try alternate spellings or different versions of the composer’s name. Usually, the work is somewhere in Tresona’s system.
If you still can’t find it, you can submit a title that isn’t in their system by selecting “Add New Composition”. Be as descriptive as possible, including the source material’s title and composer. It’s also helpful to include a YouTube link to a recording of the source material so Tresona can identify exactly what you’re requesting.
Only Call It a Medley If It’s a Medley
Tresona will ask whether your selection is a medley, meaning it’s paired with other pieces. Think before you say yes, because a medley can raise your total price.
Apply for each piece as its own request unless two pieces are used together within one single movement of your show. If a movement combines two selections (or more), apply for those titles as a medley. If you’re not sure how to classify your arrangement, ask me before you submit.
A good way to tell if your arrangements need to be listed as a medley is to look at how they appear in your Perusall scores. If multiple pieces or selections appear within the same Perusall score, that’s a good indicator that you should apply for them as a medley. If the source material appears in separate perusal scores, submit them as separate requests.
Don’t Forget to Name Me as Your Arranger
When Tresona asks for your arranger, search for Evan VanDoren. A few different profiles can show up. Pick the one that lists “N/A” as the organization.
If you’re not sure which entry to choose, take a screenshot and send it to me before you continue. I’m happy to clarify.
This step matters because listing me as your arranger lets me see the licenses you’ve applied for and track their status, including when permissions are approved and payments are received.
Why do they ask for a Rehearsal Date?
Honestly, I’m not sure, but I usually list May 1st. The date you choose won’t have much impact on the process!
Check Public Domain Claims Before You Apply
I’ve seen Tresona make mistakes with public domain music. If you believe a piece doesn’t need a license because it’s in the public domain, do your research before you apply, so you have something to back that up.
Cornell’s copyright term and public domain chart is a good place to start. As a rough guide, U.S. works published before 1931 are in the public domain, but later works follow more complicated rules, and a modern arrangement or edition of an old tune can carry its own protection. If Tresona tries to charge you for a piece you’re confident is public domain, don’t be bashful about contacting them to ask.
Another easy way to gauge whether a piece is in the public domain is to ask an AI tool like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, or Claude. Providing the composer’s name, where and when the piece was published, and the composer’s death date can often give you a useful starting point. AI isn’t always accurate on copyright questions, so don’t rely on its answer alone, but it can help when you’re unsure about a piece’s copyright status.
Apply, Then Wait for Approval
Once you submit your requests, the next move is patience. Nothing gets paid until a license is approved, and a license isn’t yours until it’s approved and paid.
Watch the Approval Clock
Tresona can be slow. Each request in the portal lists an approximate approval time, so keep an eye on it. If you’re a week or so past that estimate, or a few weeks have passed without approval, email them and ask about the delay. A little poke from a customer sometimes pushes a title through faster.
At the same time, the listed approval windows can be wildly inaccurate. I’ve seen selections with a 90-day approval window approved overnight, while others listed at seven days have taken months. Regardless of the listed timeframe, if a few weeks have passed without an update, it can help to send Tresona a quick email to check the status. Sometimes a small nudge is enough to get the process moving.
When Titles Get Approved
When titles are approved, you’ll receive a notification, and I’ll receive the same notification if I’m listed as your arranger. At that point, you can pay immediately or wait until all of your titles are approved and pay for them together.
There’s no need to notify me when a title is approved or paid. I’ll receive those notifications automatically, so you can move forward with payment whenever you’re ready.
Life Without Tresona: Going Straight to the Publisher
You can skip Tresona and go directly to the copyright holder. It takes more legwork to find out who owns the rights, and more paperwork and correspondence once you do. It’s also almost always cheaper.
The ASCAP repertory search can help you find who owns a title’s publishing rights, which can save you a lot of time.
If you go this route, or any route outside Tresona, let me know and keep me updated. I won’t get emails or notifications automatically, so it’s up to you to keep me posted.
What I Need From You
However you secure a license, I need two things: the signed license, so I can start writing, and proof of payment, so I can release your music. In many cases, when you obtain a license outside the Tresona system, getting a copy of the license itself is easy. Most licensors will provide one automatically, which you can simply forward to me. Proof of payment, however, can sometimes be harder to obtain.
If a license holder or publisher asks you to pay by check, they may receive and process the check without sending any confirmation. If you obtain a license outside of Tresona, or the license is only available through another source, plan to follow up and confirm that they received your payment.
Once you have written confirmation of payment, simply forward it to me. This can be as simple as an email response from the licensing entity confirming that they received your payment.
Why would I go outside of Tresona? And where would I go?
Typically, when licenses aren’t available through the Tresona system, you need to acquire them directly from the rights holder or publisher. A few common sources are:
Boosey & Hawkes
Boosey & Hawkes no longer lets Tresona administer licenses on their titles. That doesn’t mean the license isn’t available; it just means you’ll apply directly with Boosey & Hawkes instead. The process is a bit more involved, but still manageable.
You can submit your application here. They’ll ask for a score and MP3 of your arrangement, so reach out to me, and I’ll send those over. You’ll also need to list your arranger’s address on the application, so email me, and I’ll provide mine.
Boosey & Hawkes tends to correspond directly with the director without looping in the arranger, so forward me anything they send and CC me on your replies. That’s the only way I’ll know where things stand.
They handle contracts through DocuSign, so watch for a DocuSign email once they approve your selection. When you sign, save a copy for your records. That signing session is the only time you’ll have access to the agreement.
Once approved, they’ll send an invoice, and you’ll pay them directly. They don’t automatically confirm receipt of payment, so once you expect they’ve received it, check in and forward me their reply. An email from them confirming payment is all I need. If you run into a snag at this stage, Dallas Sutter (dallas.sutter@concord.com) handles this for Boosey & Hawkes.
Short version: apply via the link, CC me on the thread, sign what they send you, and confirm payment once it’s paid.
Dunvagen Music Publishers
A handful of titles are administered by Dunvagen Music Publishing, and Dunvagen doesn’t let Tresona handle licensing on their behalf. That doesn’t mean the license isn’t available; it just means you’ll go straight to Dunvagen instead of through Tresona. The process takes a bit more legwork, but it’s still straightforward.
Start with this fillable PDF. I’ve already added my name and signature where they’re needed, so you just need to fill in the rest:
- Page 1: the date and the composition title
- Page 2: your institution’s name and address, and your name, email, and phone number under “Requested by”
Send it in as directed on the form, and CC me on that email. Dunvagen often corresponds directly with the director without looping in the arranger, so from here on, forward me anything they send you and CC me on your replies. That’s the only way I’ll know where things stand.
Once approved, Dunvagen will send an invoice, and payment goes directly to them. They don’t send payment confirmation automatically, so once you expect they’ve received it, check in and forward me their reply. An email from them saying they’ve received payment is all I need.
Short version: fill out the PDF, CC me on the thread, and forward payment confirmation once you have it.
Music Murphy Press (MSync Licensing)
Murphy Music Press handles “permission to arrange” licenses through MSYNC Licensing. Reach out to them directly at msynclicensing@gmail.com, or contact Jen Zimmerer at jzimmerer@murphymusicpress.com, who handles most of these requests.
They’ll send you a license document to fill out, sign, and return. Payment goes to them, either by card through a Square invoice or by check mailed to Murphy Music Press c/o MSYNC Licensing, 3403 Napa Blvd, Avon, OH 44011. Once they’ve received payment and your signed license, they’ll send back a countersigned copy.
Once you have that countersigned license and proof of payment, forward both to me.
John Mackey
This is the easiest license on the list. John Mackey built part of his website to handle the whole process in one sitting: pick your piece, add it to your cart, and pay. You’ll get the license and payment confirmation instantly, no waiting on approval, no back and forth.
Start here. Once you’ve got your license and payment confirmation, forward both to me and you’re set.
I’m in over my head – can I just have Evan handle it?
Yes, of course… Just email me and let me know which package you’d like to pursue, and I’ll take it from there!
Frequently Asked Questions
When should the licensing process start?
As soon as you accept your quote. Waiting only pushes your timeline back, since approvals can take weeks.
Do I have to use Tresona?
No. Tresona is the easiest route for most directors, but you can go directly to a publisher, which is usually cheaper and takes more work. If you go outside Tresona, keep me posted on your progress.
When do I get my music?
I start writing once your licenses are approved. Your music is delivered once the licenses are fully paid.
How long do approvals take?
It varies by title. Tresona lists an approximate approval time for each request in your portal. If you’re a week past that estimate, or a few weeks have gone by, email them to ask.
What if I think a piece is in the public domain?
Research it before you apply so you can back up the claim. Cornell’s public domain chart is a solid starting point, and I’m glad to take a look with you. If Tresona charges you for something you’re sure is public domain, ask them about it.
Can I switch to Acquisition or Full Service after I’ve started?
Yes. Email me and let me know which package you’d like, and I’ll take care of the rest.
Questions about any of this? Email me or reach out on my contact page. If you’re still choosing music, you can browse my marching band shows or the full catalog.
Evan VanDoren is a composer and arranger who writes marching band shows and concert music for programs at every level. He spent nine years as a band director at Cedar Park High School, where the band won three UIL State Championships, and he serves as the brass composer and arranger for the Santa Clara Vanguard. Explore his work at evanvandoren.com.
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