copying another composer's work

I've reopened the thread AND I kindly ask that you guys please stay on topic and keep the confrontation to a minimum! It's nice to have a thread this active and heated BUT... no need to resort to confrontation and insults. Thanks.

Yeah, to close the thread was silly. That's the kind of, well, stupid moderation that I'm annoyed at.

On topic: derivative quotations are ok, but outright plagiarism should be prosecuted.

We keep the financial gains/loss of copying first, lets discuss more about the musical aspect, if you have any examples please share. there might be a few piece lying in our own forum. do watch out.

Two posts I previously made on the topic:

http://forum.youngcomposers.com/t25263/too-close-to-influences-copies/page__p__342398entry342398

On originality

and

http://forum.youngcomposers.com/t25443/what-is-music/page__view__findpost__p__349592

as a tangent on copies vs the original.

Well, I think that if you are copying a melody, it should be like a flashback or something, not the main melody of the piece. I think it's fine if you are really just "quoting" it. I think if you take a melody or chord progression that someone else wrote, and you write it and claim it for your own it's kind of cheating, unless you write the melody, then realize it.

However, it worked out for Mozart: The melody of the overture to the magic flute was originally Clementi's melody.

Thank you all composers, in giving me your feedback, this opens up a new perspective for me.