Grading

Grading is based on the work's form, structure, complexity and “control of sound”. The works are graded by STIM's music adviser and any complaints related to grading are handled by STIM's grading committee. The aim is to properly remunerate composers of works that require a particularly large degree of labour and have limited performance opportunities. It is not an assessment of the work's artistic quality. Remuneration is calculated by multiplying the work's royalty amount by a grading factor whereby A=1; B=1.5; C= 2; D=2.5; E=3.

The following criteria are taken into account when grading:

• Form

  The work's overall structure: its arrangement and the relationship between the work's parts/elements.

• Structure

  Relationship between the compositional elements, the structure of each movement, the number of parts/layers and the relationship between them.

• Complexity

  Constitution of the compositional elements, formulation of parts/layers, amount of information, and wealth of detail.

• The composer's “control over the sonic end result”

  Control through score or other model. Control refers to the wealth of detail related to instrumentation, delivery notes and dynamics, for example. Lyrical arrangement in music containing vocals. When a composer has directed the course of sound through a graphic model and established a basis for improvisation, such models or bases will be taken into account in the assessment.

A portion (movement) of a larger protected work inherits the grading of the entire work, unless the portion has been rescored and/or reworked and played as an individual piece. If so, the work will be assigned a new grade. The same applies to a work that takes on a new character after being reworked/arranged.

STIM’s music adviser, Jonas Nordin, determines the grading. Any complaints are dealt with by STIM’s grading committee, which also discusses general guidelines for the grading process. The grading committee comprises representatives from The Society of Swedish Composers (FST), The Swedish Society of Popular Music Composers (SKAP) and The Swedish Music Publishers Association (SMFF).