Dave Olsen of Alfred Publishing (one of the leading sheet music publishers in the USA) introduces himself and the company he works for. In particular, he describes how the sheet-music business has changed over the past few decades, from a model in which Alfred and others essentially republished sheet music obtained directly from the songwriter, to one in which publishers of sheet music actually transcribe sheet music directly from a finished recording for which written music was never created. He also discusses how electronic transmission is changing how sheet music is distributed, how Alfred’s in-house arrangers do their jobs, how to get your song to a sheet-music publisher like Alfred, what benefits Alfred offers to songwriters whose songs they publish, what music educators and musicians should know about copyright, and much more.

Dave Olsen is the Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing. In this segment, Dave discusses his musical background and his career path in the music industry. Dave grew up in Miami, FL and played both piano and french horn through all of his school training. He got involved in the Music Merchandising program while attending the University of Miami and established many great contacts that helped him later in life. Dave talks about the positions he has held at Wurlizter Piano, Columbia Publications, Warner Bros. Publications, and presently, Alfred Publishing.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, describes the many different music educational products created by Alfred Publishing. Alfred Publishing releases material on a wide variety of educational topics including piano, school band, and choral method books and arrangements. In addition, with its acquisition of Warner Bros. Publications in 2005, Alfred Publishing is now among the leaders in pop sheet music publishing.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs from Alfred Publishing, describes the process of creating sheet music in the early days and how that process has changed today. Currently, the arrangers at Alfred Publishing start with an artist’s recording, transcribe the music, and then arrange it for piano, guitar, concert band, orchestra, etc. Dave also discusses the new engraving, printing, and distribution technologies available for print music publications.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, describes different kinds of arrangers and their relationship with publishing companies. Like most publishing companies, there are in-house arrangers on staff who work for Alfred Publishing on a full time basis. Their job is to transcribe recordings and create arrangements for a number of settings including piano, guitar, band, orchestra, etc. There are also independent arrangers who do arrangement projects for print music publishing companies on a freelance basis. Dave also shares the different kinds of deal structures that are used for independent arrangers and who is involved in those agreements.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs for Alfred Publishing, discusses the process of submitting music to publishing companies. Publishing companies are more open to unsolicited material then record companies and if you generate high quality work, there is a fair chance you may get your transcriptions published. If Alfred Publishing decides to publish the work, they enter into a royalty contract with the writer who typically assigns the copyright to Alfred in the process so they can manage the copyrights for them. Publishing companies generally connect the writer with a performing rights organization in order to help manage and collect their royalties.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, describes the types of licenses granted by Alfred Publishing. Oftentimes, Alfred will sign a representation agreement with an artist or publishing company and licenses will be dealt with through that agreement. In some cases, Alfred must obtain publishing licenses from other publishing companies depending on who owns the rights to the work. Alfred deals with a large variety of licensing situations, from middle school band programs to big name artists, and the company tries to accommodate clients with mechanical, print, and performing licenses to the best of their ability.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, discusses the most practical ways to start a career in music publishing. Dave stresses that it’s important to go to school and learn something that no one else in your organization knows. With the right education and determination you can make yourself a focal point in your company by thinking outside of the box and taking action. He gives examples of learning about international copyright and expanding his company's distribution and publishing opportunities in other territories as a result of this approach.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, discusses the importance of being involved in professional organizations for networking and career opportunities. Dave has built a strong network of contacts that he can depend on and he recommends that every person getting involved in the industry join a professional organization and start making connections.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, discusses what all educators should know about copyright. He believes that music educators need to know what they can and can't do when it comes to copyright. The music publishing industry needs to do a better job when it comes to teaching educators about copyright, the benefits of copyright, and how they can use it in the classroom.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, discusses career opportunities in music education publishing and provides practical advise for finding those opportunities in the industry. Dave highly recommends the internet as a resource for finding work. Alfred Publishing, along with many other large publishers, have want ads for employment positions listed on their websites. Dave also recommends starting in another field in the music industry and making your way into publishing.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs for Alfred Publishing, discusses the various media formats available in music education publishing today including music books, books with audio CDs, and instructional DVDs. These new formats are not only revolutionizing the way music students are learning but they can also be utilized by teachers to work these new materials into their lessons and reach the students on new levels.

Dave Olsen, VP of Business and Legal Affairs at Alfred Publishing, discusses music technology and how it has affected the music publishing industry. The internet and music software programs have made drastic changes to the way the publishing business functions, and in turn, more music is being created and content delivery opportunities have expanded immensely. With access to new technologies, Alfred Publishing is now capable of providing universal easy access to their broad catalog of 70k titles - a feat that was unimaginable in the past.