This thesis analyses the copyright exception of pastiche from the perspective of musical borrowing. Pastiche forms part of the three-pronged exception of article 5(3)(k) Infosoc. After its inclusion in article 17(7) of the DSM Directive as a mandatory exception for user-generated content in the context of Online Content Sharing Service Providers and the CJEU's judgement in Pelham, the exception gained increased relevance. It is also at the center of the Pelham II referral.

This thesis endeavours to give a defintion of the legal term of pastiche and answer the questions posed to the CJEU in Pelham II. It also examines the exception through the lens of musical borrowing techniques and endeavours to apply the proposed definition to said techniques in order to test whether it is in accordance with its purpose in the copyright acquis as well as the three-step test.