Event Industry News

Music bill is sour note for fiesta charity funds.

IT was supposed to be a Blaze of Glory, but rock legends Bon Jovi are at the centre of a wrangle which could rob bonfire organisers’ donations to worthy causes in Peterborough of thousands of pounds.

The city’s annual Bonfire Night Firework Fiesta – the biggest display in the region – attracted about 15,000 spectators to Ferry Meadows, despite atrocious weather on the night.

But organisers were still hoping to have raised about £10,000 for charities – until learning they could be landed with a bill for £2,200 for breaching copyright laws.

For as well as the spectacular 25-minute £20,000 firework display, the evening’s entertainment, hosted by Lite FM, also included a number of local artists performing on stage – including a handful of cover versions of hit songs by Bon Jovi and David Bowie.

As a result, the Performing Rights Society (PRS), which protects the copyright of songwriters, composers and music publishers, has told organisers to cough up.

And organisers at The Rotary Club of Peterborough and members of Peterborough Round Table fear their chosen charities’ slice of the estimated £10,000 raised in 2008 will be slashed by £2,200.

The event is now in its 34th year, and has raised more than £285,000 for charities, but stunned organiser Marcus Horrell said: “We had never even heard of it before, and were unaware we were doing anything wrong.

“The Firework Fiesta was a fantastic event, despite the weather, and then we got a call out of the blue to say we had infringed copyright.

“The event is solely organised to raise money for charities across Peterborough.

“I have never come across an organisation that can demand money from an event. It is run by 14 volunteers, who put a lot of time and effort into it.”

The fiesta began in 1975, when a group of local people made a decision to stage a major event for families in and around Peterborough, with the aim of reducing the number of injuries suffered by children every year from fireworks.

Now it is one of the city’s star attractions with an estimated 20,000 people regularly venturing out to support charities including Age Concern Peterborough, Sue Ryder Care’s Thorpe Hall hospice and St Theresa’s centre for the homeless

However, a spokeswoman from the PRS stressed the amount quoted was an estimate and no bill had been issued yet.

She said: “The figure provided to the organisers was based on an estimated capacity of 15,000 people to give them an indication of what a PRS Music Licence may cost.

“We always try to licence fairly and accurately based on music usage information provided to us by the customer.

“PRS for Music operates according to UK law – the 1988 Copyright Designs and Patents Act. This law gives composers, songwriters and music publishers the right to earn from their creations when this work is performed or played in public.

“Without PRS for Music, businesses would have to negotiate separately with millions of music owners around the world every time they wanted to play a piece of music.”

The Firework Fiesta committee will meet on February 4 to discuss the demand from PRS.

Source: Peterborough Today