Music licensing group ASCAP sues Northampton-based Iron Horse Entertainment, alleging unpaid royalties from Calvin Theatre performances

A representative of the nation’s leading composers and musicians has filed a lawsuit against Northampton-based Iron Horse Entertainment Group, claiming the company’s Calvin Theatre owes royalties to artists who played songs at the venue.

The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in Springfield on Monday, alleges Iron Horse owner Eric Suher and his company infringed the intellectual property rights of songwriters whose compositions are often played by the Northampton band.

The plaintiffs are members of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), a national nonprofit organization that licenses the music of more than 875,000 songwriters and other musicians. Venues like the Calvin Theatre have ASCAP licenses that allow them to play music from over 11.5 million copyrighted songs. Venues, in turn, must pay ASCAP for each performance so the society can distribute royalties to artists.

The Calvin Theater’s ASCAP license was revoked in April after years of unpaid payments, said Jackson Wagener, ASCAP’s senior vice president of commercial and legal affairs.

Since then, Calvin has still hosted performers — many of them tribute bands — playing music owned by ASCAP members, he said. Theaters must report performances to ASCAP, including venue capacity and ticket sales information, to determine how much they owe the artist. Those fees represent a “small fraction” of the venue’s revenue, Wagner said.

A representative for Suher said in a statement that missed payments and reports amounted to “negligence” and were not deliberately skipped. The representative said Sur was sorry for the misunderstanding and intended to make the payment “as soon as possible.”

In response, ASCAP spokeswoman Cathy Halgas Nevins said the association looked forward to speaking with Suher and “exploring the possibility of an early resolution”.

Legal filings in U.S. District Court in Springfield say ASCAP sent notices in February and March warning Suher and his company that their licenses would be revoked if they continued to miss performance reports and pay the associated fees. The company never responded, and ASCAP revoked its license on April 29, Wagner said.

On July 15, ASCAP sent an investigator to the Calvin Theater, where a tribute band was playing songs from the rock band Chicago, which belongs to ASCAP.

During the performance, investigators flagged six songs for which Iron Horse would owe payment, the lawsuit said. These include the popular works “If You Leave Me Now,” “Beginnings,” and “Feelin’ Stronger Every Day.” ASCAP said Calvin Theater infringed the copyrights of Chicago members without permission to play ASCAP artists’ music.

The lawsuit seeks “statutory damages,” which could mean up to $30,000 per violation under federal law. But Wagner said ASCAP wants an “amicable settlement” that includes licensing fees and litigation costs. In fact, the venue may be licensed again in the future.

“We’re not going to bankrupt anyone,” Wagner said. “We want all businesses that use music to be successful and our members to be properly compensated.”

While the lawsuit only targets songs that ASCAP investigators played on Calvin’s night, Wagener said the lawsuit was filed on behalf of the nearly 900,000 artists for which his organization has licensed music. In addition to the lawsuit against Suher, ASCAP has filed legal challenges to music venues, bars and restaurants in Danvers, Massachusetts; New Haven, Connecticut; Chicago and several other cities across the country.

Paying music licensors so they can distribute royalties to artists is standard practice in the live music industry, ASCAP said in a statement.

“Thousands of well-run businesses recognize the importance of paying music creators to use their music. Any business that uses copyrighted music has the opportunity to obtain a license for legal use through simple licensing,” ASCAP said. And added that bars and restaurants pay less than $2 a day on average.

The group added that musicians and artists — many of whom are not big names like Chicago’s Robert Rahm or James Pankow — depend on royalties to survive.

“Music is how we put food on the table and send our children to school,” ASCAP board chairman, songwriter and composer Paul Williams added in a statement.

Suher’s Iron Horse Group also owns the Iron Horse Concert Hall, Pearl Street Nightclub and Basement in Northampton, and Mountain Park in Holyoke.

The company has a history of participating in the legal system, including labor law complaints filed by employees with the office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey.

a collection 2019 Worker Claims Suher has taken steps to avoid overtime pay, offers no sick leave, and insists that his in-person paychecks are often late. The attorney general’s office said Suh’s company failed to provide “true and accurate records” when Healey’s office investigated.

Healy Final Quote Iron Horse Entertainment Group is seeking $100,000 in damages and penalties for violations.A June report by New England Public Media stated that Sur may agree to settlement with the country.

Except for that example, Suh was also fined He was investigated by the national environmental protection department in accordance with the law for fuel storage violations.

He was also repeatedly criticized by the public for the condition of the Iron Horse’s property. In 2016, Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz urged Suher to fix The marquee at the Calvin Theatre, which has been in disrepair for almost a year (“A” is missing, resulting in a “C_LVIN” sign). In 2017, singer-songwriter Vanessa Carlton complained about conditions at the Iron Horse Hall, saying the temperature on the stage was uncomfortable and the furniture in the dressing room fell apart.

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