Musical America Blogs

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. An orchestra wants to commission a composer we represent to create an arrangement of a piece they want to perform. We were hoping that our composer would retain ownership of the arrangement so that in the future if the orchestra, or anyone else, ever wanted to play his arrangement, he […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder I recently had to cancel an engagement. We had a signed contract with the venue, but circumstances arose where we had no choice. I sent a very cordial and professional email to the venue, but got a very threatening and aggressive response. I wrote back and […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: I have a question about a visa I am working on.  This is one of those 0-1/0-2 visa things.  The person getting the 0-1 is fine and dandy, but the person who is getting the 0-2 just got French citizenship and is waiting for her passport […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: If I am doing a fee split, am I entitled to the emails of the people who purchase tickets? Our group booked a show at a venue where we are supposed to be getting a portion of the ticket sales. We have asked for the names […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: I represent a performance group from Canada who will be touring the United States. Three of the members are Canadians, but two are not. I have applied for a P-1 visa. Because the group is from Canada, can they enter the US just with the approval […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder We recently has a situation where one of our groups showed up at a festival, but just before they were to go on stage, the police shut down the event due to an approaching electrical storm. The presenter had given the group a deposit for 50% […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder I am considering working with an agent, but almost every agent I speak with wants to collect my engagement fees on my behalf. Why can’t I collect my fees and just pay the agent? If an agent collects my fees, should I ask for a separate […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder We booked an artist to perform at our theater, but ticket sales have been much lower than we expected. The show is a month away. We are a small venue with a small budget, and can’t afford to present an artist if we can’t sell enough […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: I have several visa petitions pending as well as applications for Central Withholding Agreements. What impact will the government shutdown have? Do I need to be worried? That depends on whether or not the lack of an operational government worries you. Granted, it hasn’t been that […]

By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Dear Law and Disorder: If a foreign singer (who is not a citizen of a country that is eligible for the visa waiver program) gets a record deal in the USA, what kind of visa would they need to apply for? And if the singer is currently living in a […]