To say at the beginning of a book or film, or before a piece of music, that it has

Question

dedicate means to say at the beginning of a book or film, or before a piece of music, that it has been written, made, or performed for someone that you love or respect.If I want to dedicate some song to someone, then what word should be used because according to the definition dedicate can only be used for a thing that is your property?

Avangi · Accepted Answer

I see no problem with "dedicated." If someone buys the rights to your intellectual property, the dedication page goes with it.

There's a statement somewhere on the site that posted items are considered a contribution to the public domain.

A dedication is not the same as a gift. You may dedicate a song to your wife and assign the property rights to your son.

Beethoven dedicated the Eroica (3rd Symphony) to Napoleon. But when Napoleon declared himself Emperor, Beethoven tore up the title page. Why not? It was still his.

Avangi · Answer

Edit.
Philanthroposts and institutions often "commission" a work of art. This is not the same as buying a work of art.

The Boston Symphony comissioned the Bartok Concerto for Orchestra. They didn't buy it. They paid him to write it.

Michael Jackson at one time bought the rights to all of the Beatles' songs.

Avangi · Answer

Edit. Edit.

Hmmmm. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding you.

Are you a performer? - a singer? You're going to sing a song to someone, and dedicate that performance to the person?

Are you going to call up a radio disk jockey program and request a song, dedicating it to someone?

In these cases, "dedicate" is the expression that is commonly used. I think it would be considered correct regardless of who owns the rights to the song.

Avangi · Answer

Singers and disk jockeys often say, "I'd like to dedicate this song to Mary Jones."  I've never heard them use any other term, that I can recall.

Jackson6612 · Answer

AvangiI see no problem with "dedicated." If someone buys the rights to your intellectual property, the dedication page goes with it.

That was the question. Suppose I dedicate one of my all-time favorite songs to you:

Is dedication justified in this case? I haven't bought any rights to this song, so it is still someone else's property.

AvangiThere's a statement somewhere on the site that posted items are considered a contribution to the public domain.

That statement is right at the bottom of this page:
All content posted by our users is a contribution to the public domain.

AvangiA dedication is not the same as a gift. You may dedicate a song to your wife and assign the property rights to your son.

Of course, a dedication is not the same as a gift because gift cannot be taken back. But I believe a gift can also be taken back in some rare cases. Suppose a boyfriend gives a diamond ring to his girlfriend and the next day somehow he finds that she is involved with some other guy. Then, he has every right to ask for the return of the ring.

Are you comparing assigning the property to a son with a gift?

AvangiPhilanthroposts and institutions often "commission" a work of art. This is not the same as buying a work of art. [²commission 1b: to appoint or assign to a task or function <was commissioned to do the biography>]

The Boston Symphony comissioned the Bartok Concerto for Orchestra. They didn't buy it. They paid him to write it. [orchestra: a large group of musicians playing many different kinds of instruments and led by a conductor, symphony: a long piece of music usually in four parts, written for an orchestra, symphony orchestra: a large group of classical musicians led by a conductor]

Michael Jackson at one time bought the rights to all of the Beatles' songs.

If they paid him to write it, then this means they bought some of the rights from Bartok Concerto beforehand?

Was the the required in ''all of the Beatles' songs''?

AvangiHmmmm. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding you.

Are you a performer? - a singer? You're going to sing a song to someone, and dedicate that performance to the person?

Are you going to call up a radio disk jockey program and request a song, dedicating it to someone?

In these cases, "dedicate" is the expression that is commonly used. I think it would be considered correct regardless of who owns the rights to the song.

Avangi, you once again have proven that you are a genius.

Actually, I heard this on the TV programme where people were calling to request songs and also dedicating them to their loved ones. When I checked the dictionary, I found no such definition which permitted to use dedicate for something whose rights you do not own.

Thank you very much for the help.

Avangi · Answer

Jackson6612Of course, a dedication is not the same as a gift because gift cannot be taken back. But I believe a gift can also be taken back in some rare cases. Suppose a boyfriend gives a diamond ring to his girlfriend and the next day somehow he finds that she is involved with some other guy. Then, he has every right to ask for the return of the ring.

I don't find much difference between a dedication and a gift with respect to the ease with which it may be taken back.
Before the advent of politically correct terms, the term in the US for a taker backer of gifts was "Indian give," which supposedly had some historical significance - I don't remember what.

Are you comparing assigning the property to a son with a gift?

Yes. Or it may be a bequeathal.

<<The Boston Symphony comissioned the Bartok Concerto for Orchestra. They didn't buy it. They paid him to write it.>>

If they paid him to write it, then this means they bought some of the rights from Bartok Concerto beforehand?

Yes. I'm not sure of the details. Of course they gave the premire performance.

<< Michael Jackson at one time bought the rights to all of the Beatles' songs.>>

Was the the required in ''all of the Beatles' songs''?

Alternate forms are possible. the rights to all Beatles songs In this case, I'd take "Beatles" as an adjective.
In the previous example, with a small "t" on "the," I'd take "Beatles' " as a possessive adjective.
It gets messy, because the name of the band is really "The Beatles."
When you use "all of," a "the" is usually required. "I ate all of the sandwiches." You can't say, "I ate all of sandwiches."

But it would be stupid to say, "the rights to all of the The Beatles['] songs." (I show the appostrophe as optional here because we do or don't use the possessive somewhat indiscriminately in these cases.)

<< Are you going to call up a radio disk jockey program and request a song, dedicating it to someone?

In these cases, "dedicate" is the expression that is commonly used. I think it would be considered correct regardless of who owns the rights to the song. >>

I found no such definition which permitted to use dedicate for something whose rights you do not own.

Ithink I've heard of professional tennis players dedicating their win or their performance in a particular match to someone. (I don't think the prize money is included. , but it could be.)

In the case of requesting a dedication for the broadcast of a single song, this is an old tradition, and I'm sure no ownership rights apply. The broadcastor pays any fees involved.
ASCAP and BMI and possibly other entities deal with collecting the performance fees for their members. At one time there was a big flap because Irving Berlin insisted on collecting a fee every time the Boy Scouts sang *** Bless America around a campfire.

To say at the beginning of a book or film, or before a piece of music, that it has

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