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Choral Public Domain Library
Choral Public Domain Library
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The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL), also known as ChoralWiki, is an online community and repository for choral and vocal music. Its contents primarily include sheet music in the public domain or otherwise freely available for printing and performing (such as via permission from the copyright holder).

Key Information

It is a 501(c)(3), tax-deductible organization,[1] whose contents are published under one of multiple types of specific copyright licenses. Editing articles or contributing scores is allowed only for contributors who create a free account. The CPDL stands with IMSLP, Musopen and the Wind Repertory Project as among the most prominent online music repertoire databases.[2]

Overview

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The site CPDL.org was launched in December 1998 by Rafael Ornes.[3][4] In 2005 CPDL was ported, or converted, to wiki format, and is also known as ChoralWiki.[5] In July 2008, Ornes stepped back from site administration and turned over operational responsibilities to a transition committee which subsequently incorporated CPDL as a non-profit under California state law and now operates CPDL.[5]

In addition to making sheet music scores available, the site includes:

  • original texts, their sources and translations;
  • cross-indexing of choral music using criteria including musical genre, period, and number/distribution of voice parts;
  • composer information;
  • description and performance considerations can be included for works;
  • indexes of published collections (primarily historical collections) of choral music;
  • community discussion such as through a bulletin board forum or via "Talk" pages related to composers or specific works.
  • sponsorship recognition and a way to donate via credit card or PayPal.

Music is available for free download in a variety of formats, including score images in PDF, PS and TIFF format, sound files in MIDI and MP3 formats, and in the notation formats supported by various notation programs, including Finale, Sibelius, NoteWorthy Composer, Encore, and the open source GNU LilyPond. Most scores on CPDL are distributed under an open-source license. As of 1 December 2017, CPDL archives over 27,800 scores by more than 2,900 composers, contributed by over 1,200 editors and contributors.[6] It includes large numbers of scores from the Renaissance and Baroque eras, including nearly complete vocal works by William Byrd and Tomás Luis de Victoria in excellent editions.[citation needed]

CPDL is suggested as a resource by departmental or faculty websites at Kent State University, Northern Illinois University, the University of Oregon, the University of Western Ontario, the Internet Public Library of the University of Michigan, the University at Albany, The State University of New York, by the UCLA Music Library, by the libraries at the Universities of Boston[7] and Stanford and by inclusion by faculty members in syllabi for courses at the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh.[8] It is recommended by the Iowa and Massachusetts chapters of the American Choral Directors Association, and is included in the resource database of Intute, an association of Institutions in the UK.[9]

Jason Sickel has described the CPDL as a Gold Mine for Choral Directors.[10]

License terms

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Unless a contributor elects one of multiple copyright license types supported, contents are published under a default specific copyright license[11] based on the GNU GPL license.

The default CPDL license allows copying/distributing copies of a musical edition, as well as modification and derivative works free or for a fee, as permitted by the license, conspicuously retaining on each copy the applicable copyright notice and/or other references to the license/terms under which it is distributed.

See also

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References

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Further reading

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Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Choral Public Domain Library

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The Choral Library (CPDL), also known as ChoralWiki, is a free online repository dedicated to hosting choral and scores, texts, translations, and related resources for performers, educators, and enthusiasts worldwide. Founded in December 1998 by Rafael Ornes, a minister of music at Valley Presbyterian Church in , CPDL began as a simple archive of downloadable choral scores and quickly grew into one of the largest digital collections of its kind. In August 2005, the site transitioned to a wiki-based platform, enabling collaborative contributions from a global community of volunteers who upload, edit, and maintain editions under the CPDL license, which permits copying, modification, and redistribution while preserving the status of the underlying works. By 2010, CPDL was formally incorporated as a U.S. 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization, supporting its mission to ensure perpetual free access to this musical heritage. As of November 2025, CPDL hosts 54,130 choral and vocal works by 5,327 composers, spanning genres from motets to Romantic anthems, with advanced search tools, forums for discussion, and multilingual support enhancing its utility. The project's emphasis on legal materials distinguishes it from commercial sites, fostering educational and performance uses without restrictions on the core compositions.

History

Founding and early years

The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL) was founded in December 1998 by Rafael Ornes as a personal website aimed at providing free access to digitized scores of choral music, starting with an initial posting of 6 scores that month. Ornes, a professional musician with an engineering background and then serving as minister of music at Valley Presbyterian Church in , initially conceived the project as a dissertation endeavor, drawing inspiration from models to facilitate collaborative sharing of musical resources. From its inception, CPDL focused on a modest collection of scanned and editable works, targeting choral directors, performers, and scholars seeking affordable alternatives to commercial . Early promotion through music forums and lists quickly drew volunteer submissions, as contributors digitized and uploaded scores from historical composers like and Bach. This grassroots participation drove initial expansion, underscoring the demand for a centralized digital archive of choral repertoire.

Expansion and organizational changes

In August 2005, the Choral Public Domain Library transitioned to a wiki-based platform known as ChoralWiki, powered by software, which supported collaborative editing and streamlined contributions from users worldwide. This shift marked a significant technological upgrade, transforming the static repository into a dynamic, community-driven resource that encouraged ongoing expansion of its choral music collection. To foster greater , discussion forums were introduced in September 2005, providing spaces for users to share feedback, seek assistance, and collaborate on content development. These platforms complemented the 's editing features, enabling real-time interaction among contributors and users interested in choral works. In July 2008, founder Rafael Ornes stepped down as manager, delegating operations to a group of administrators and forming a transition to restructure the organization. This led to software upgrades, server migrations, and the establishment of backups by the end of 2008, preparing for formal . In May 2010, the organization formally incorporated as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit entity under U.S. law, shifting from its prior informal structure to one governed by a volunteer . This legal change ensured sustainable operations and tax-deductible donations, supporting long-term growth while maintaining its mission of free access to choral resources. Following incorporation, enhancements included refined indexing systems for better searchability and the integration of files, such as audio recordings, by , further enriching the platform's utility for researchers and performers.

Content and features

Collection scope and statistics

The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL) primarily hosts choral and vocal scores, along with accompanying texts, translations, and biographies, serving as a comprehensive repository for freely accessible musical materials. These resources emphasize works from the and eras, reflecting a strong focus on polyphonic and traditions, while encompassing a broader historical range from medieval to 20th-century compositions published in 1929 or earlier to ensure status. As of November 2025, CPDL contains 54,130 choral and vocal works by 5,327 composers, demonstrating its extensive scale and growth as a key digital archive for choral music enthusiasts and performers. These materials have been contributed by over 1,800 volunteer editors, including both active and inactive participants, who curate and upload editions to maintain the library's and . The collection exhibits significant diversity, featuring both sacred works—such as motets, masses, and hymns—and secular pieces like madrigals and part-songs, available in multiple languages including Latin, English, German, French, and Italian. Editions draw from various historical sources, including original prints, manuscripts, and modern scholarly reconstructions, allowing users to explore choral repertoire across cultural and linguistic boundaries without copyright restrictions on the core compositions.

Search and navigation tools

The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL) provides users with multiple navigation options to browse its extensive collection of choral scores, including indexes organized by , work title, , and language. These indexes facilitate discovery through structured categories, such as composer-specific lists that aggregate all associated works and genre-based groupings like motets or masses. For example, users can navigate to categories for specific voicings, such as or TBB, or historical periods like or , allowing targeted exploration without relying solely on search queries. The site's search functionality includes a basic keyword search for composers, titles, or lyrics, alongside an advanced search tool that enables filtering by criteria such as musical period, voicing, for accompanied works, , style, and . This advanced option supports precise queries, for instance, retrieving unaccompanied motets in Latin from the Romantic era scored for SSAA, enhancing efficiency for researchers and performers seeking specific . The interface also incorporates wiki-style navigation with internal links to related pages, such as biographies or work discussions, promoting contextual exploration. CPDL supports a variety of file formats to accommodate different user needs, with PDF as the primary format for printable scores due to its widespread compatibility and fidelity to original engravings. Audio previews are available in and formats, while editable notation files include for broad software interoperability, as well as proprietary formats like Sibelius (.sib) and Finale (.mus) for users with those applications. Many entries feature scanned pages from historical prints, preserving authentic and notations for scholarly use. Additional tools enhance accessibility and utility, including alignment tables that juxtapose original texts with English translations side-by-side for linguistic analysis, and a mobile-friendly interface optimized for responsive viewing on tablets and smartphones. The platform emphasizes , offering free downloads of all materials without requiring user registration, though optional accounts enable personalized features like watchlists.

Licensing and contributions

Public domain criteria

The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL) requires all included materials to be in the under copyright law, as the site's server is hosted in the US, ensuring legal hosting and distribution without restrictions. This criterion applies to every component of a submission, including the underlying music, , translations, and any added content, all of which must lack active protection. In the , public domain status for published works created before 1978 is generally achieved after 95 years from the date of publication, meaning compositions published in or earlier entered the public domain as of January 1, 2025. For works by known authors, the term is the author's life plus 70 years, while corporate or anonymous works follow the 95-year publication rule if published with proper notice and renewal. Confirmed expired , such as those for pre-1930 choral scores without renewal, form the bulk of eligible content, prioritizing historical vocal and choral repertoire. While CPDL bases eligibility on US law, international users must note jurisdictional differences; for instance, the European Union applies a life-plus-70-years term uniformly, potentially keeping some US public domain works copyrighted abroad until 70 years after the author's death. To address such variations, CPDL editions often include warnings and may use public domain tools, like the PD-US mark or CC0 dedication, to signal confirmed worldwide availability where possible. Verification of public domain status is handled by CPDL's dedicated Copyright Issues group, which reviews submissions for compliance and consults legal resources as needed. If disputes arise or a work's status cannot be confirmed, the item is promptly removed to maintain the library's integrity. This process ensures that only verifiably free materials remain accessible, supporting global choral communities while respecting boundaries.

Contributor guidelines and licenses

Contributors to the Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL) must register for a free account to edit pages and submit content, though anonymous contributions are not permitted for uploads. The primary submission process involves using the automated "Add new work" form accessible from or work pages, where users input metadata such as , , editor, genre, voicing, language, and details before uploading files. Templates like {{Work}} and {{Edition}} are employed to structure metadata on wiki pages, ensuring consistent formatting and easy . For external files, full URLs and details like file type and size must be provided, though direct uploads to CPDL servers are preferred to prevent link breakage. The default license for scores and texts hosted on CPDL is the CPDL Copyright License, which is based on the GNU General Public License (GPL) and permits free downloading, printing, copying, distribution, performance, and modification, provided that each copy includes an appropriate and any modified versions are released under the same terms. This license ensures perpetual free access while requiring attribution to the original contributor. Alternative licenses, such as certain variants, may be used for non-score content like translations or texts, as long as they allow cost-free use, performance, and works with proper attribution; however, the CPDL license remains the standard for musical editions. Quality standards emphasize accurate engravings, with submissions required to be proofread and perfected prior to upload—PDF format is mandatory, while and files are recommended for enhanced usability. Original scans of historical sources are preferred where available, and contributors must research and verify details against reliable repositories like IMSLP or the to ensure fidelity. Plagiarism and are strictly enforced; all submissions must be original creations, works, or properly d material, with users agreeing upon upload to release content under the CPDL license and affirming they hold the necessary rights. Violations can be reported via designated channels, leading to removal if confirmed.

Community and operations

Volunteer roles and participation

Volunteers form the backbone of the Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL), contributing their expertise to sustain and grow the repository of choral music. Primary roles include score engravers, who digitize and notate scores using tools like or Finale; translators, who render lyrics and texts into various languages to broaden accessibility; proofreaders, who verify the accuracy of musical notations, texts, and metadata; forum moderators, who facilitate orderly discussions on the site's dedicated forums; and index maintainers, who organize and update the catalog of works for efficient navigation. These positions are all volunteer-based, with the site explicitly calling for editors, translators, and additional support to enhance the collection. Community engagement at CPDL revolves around collaborative contributions and interactive platforms, with numerous volunteer editors and contributors having added tens of thousands of scores and resources over the years, supported by 85,015 registered users as of 2025. The site's forums serve as vital hubs for discussions on specific editions, practices, and choral , fostering sharing among musicians, scholars, and enthusiasts worldwide; these forums include sections for support, feedback, and operational topics, with 14,604 posts across 2,168 topics as of 2025. Participation is open and inclusive, encouraging ongoing that refines content quality and inspires new submissions. Onboarding for volunteers is straightforward, requiring no formal qualifications beyond basic familiarity with wiki editing and adherence to submission guidelines, such as reviewing the score submission guide before uploading. New contributors receive mentorship through talk pages associated with individual work entries, where experienced editors provide feedback, suggestions, and guidance on best practices for , , and . This informal structure lowers , allowing anyone with relevant skills—such as music notation proficiency or linguistic expertise—to participate effectively from the outset. CPDL actively promotes diversity in its volunteer base by encouraging contributions from global participants, supported by multilingual interfaces and content in languages including Spanish, , and Dutch. This aims to reflect the international scope of choral music traditions, inviting translators and editors from diverse cultural backgrounds to enrich the library's holdings and make resources more inclusive for non-English speakers.

Governance and funding

The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL) operates under a volunteer-driven structure, emphasizing collaborative in line with its model. Following the founder's decision to step down in 2008, a Transition Committee was established to oversee the project's continuity, incorporating CPDL as a non-profit and managing its operations thereafter. This committee, composed of dedicated volunteers, handles administrative tasks through consensus-based processes documented on the project's wiki policies, ensuring community input on key decisions such as content guidelines and site updates. CPDL achieved formal non-profit status in May 2010, incorporating as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt under state law. This designation allows for tax-deductible contributions, supporting the project's mission to provide free access to choral resources without commercial intent. Funding for CPDL relies entirely on voluntary donations from users and supporters, with no , subscription fees, or other revenue streams. These contributions enable the maintenance of the website and servers, though the organization's budget remains limited, primarily covering essential operational costs such as hosting and technical support. The project's volunteer ethos and non-profit framework have sustained its growth since the 2008 transition to formal .

References

  1. https://www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
  2. https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1126&context=msl_facpub
  3. https://acdawestern.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/TactusFall2015.pdf
  4. http://mstation.org/internetpublishing2.html
  5. https://repository.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1790&context=gradschool_dissertations
  6. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236765900_Choral_Public_Domain_Library_review
  7. https://www.cpdl.org/wiki/User:CHGiffen/CPDL_organization
  8. https://test.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/User:CHGiffen/CPDL_organization
  9. https://test.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/ChoralWiki:CPDL_support%2C_help%2C_and_feedback
  10. https://guides.auraria.edu/az/choral-public-domain-library
  11. https://test.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
  12. https://test.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/ChoralWiki:CPDL_Editors/Complete
  13. https://choralnet.org/archives/425329
  14. https://www.musicxml.com/music-in-musicxml/
  15. https://www.musictechhelper.com/blog/resource-cpdl
  16. https://chorusamerica.org/singers/online-music-resources-choral-singers-0
  17. https://www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Help:What_scores_are_welcome_for_submission_at_CPDL
  18. https://copyright.cornell.edu/publicdomain
  19. https://www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Help:Score_submission_guide
  20. https://forums1.cpdl.org/
  21. https://libguides.library.albany.edu/c.php?g=537126&p=3678456
  22. https://test.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page/pt
  23. https://test.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page/es
  24. https://www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/User:CHGiffen/CPDL_organization
  25. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/236111/summary
  26. https://www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/ChoralWiki:About
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