Abstract
Library music as a particular form of labour relations brings about a significant mutation in the concept of authorship, both as the voice of an individual and that of a community. Its focus on music’s functional properties and its typical configuration as work for hire, in which musicians are pieceworkers handing over copyright to companies, redefine the roles of the actors that participate in music production. In particular, music makers are alienated from the product of their labour and from each other. It cannot be denied that library music plays a relevant role within the music industry. However, notwithstanding its implications for music making and authorship, this phenomenon remains largely understudied. This chapter looks at contemporary labour in library music through Marx’s tripartite theory of alienation (Veräußerung, Entäußerung and Entfremdung) as articulated in his Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844.