803.3 Elements of Sound Recordings
There are two types of sound recording authorship:
• Authorship in the performance(s); and
• Authorship in the production of the sound recording.
Both the performer and the producer of a sound recording of a musical performance or spoken word performance may contribute copyrightable authorship to the sound recording. Generally, the performance and production are considered a single, integrated work. In some cases, however, the main or sole contribution may be production authorship (as in a recording of bird songs, where there is no human performance) or the main contribution may be performance authorship (as in a recorded performance where the only production involved is to push the “record” button).