Is Joseph Bopp dead?

[DALTORPS]

Hi.

Does any one know if the musicologist(?) Joseph Bopp died, and if he If he died . . . when? his Mozart-edtion at Reinhardt publisht 1959 PD
in any way?


Daltorps

[ras1]

Given that his edition was published in 1959, it seems pretty likely that he was alive then, in which case none of his work is PD in Canada. I can't find any biographical information on Google.

Edit: I just found on Grove Music that he taught Martin Staehelin until 1962, so his work is definitely copyright.

[Carolus]

It all depends on what type of edition he prepared. If it is an urtext or critical edition, it had only a 25-year term from publication in Germany, which means the copyright on a 1959 score would have expired in 1985 under Sect. 70 of the German law.

[Vivaldi]

Carolus, does this mean if a work is considered urtext or critical edition, it can only enjoy a copyright protection of 25 years in Germany, even if the editor is still alive today?

[Peter]

yes

[DALTORPS]

Hello Peter.


What do meen with the "Yes": Is he dead/alivw or is´t a "yes" to "Vivaldi"?
Who was/is Joseph Bopp?

Brian.

[Vivaldi]

Like Carolus said, if the edition is an Urtext or critical edition that was published in Germany in 1959, it would enjoy a copyright protection of 25 years. Thus, the work would enter the public domain in 1984. Whether or not the editor has passed away by that time does not matter.

[DALTORPS]

Hi again.

Wasn´t Joseph Bopp come from Switzerland and not Germany?

DALTORPS

[Carolus]

Where was it published? For an edition, the country of origin might be determined by the publisher's location. Also, IMSLP's policy is to recognize a 25-year grace period for critical editions, since it's highly unliklely that such editions would qualify for any sort of copyright in Canada - even if they were published yesterday. Despite what some publishers may think, IMSLP really is trying to respect their work as much as possible while remaining faithful to our mission to keep the public domain free to the public.

Although Switzerland is not part of the EU, it's worth noting that the EU's 93/98 copyright directive permits a maximum (not a minimum) term of 30 years from publication for such editions.

[DALTORPS]

Hi.


Joseph Bopp-edition was published 1959 in Basel.


DALTORPS.

[Vivaldi]

Carolus, if that's the case, then the copyright of the Bopp edition would expire after 1989 based on the EU copyright directive?

[Carolus]

Since Switzerland is not part of the EU, EU copyright directives have no force there. I am not familiar enough with the Swiss law to know whether or not an urtext-type edition would qualify for a copyright or not.

Since IMSLP is in Canada, where such editions are most likely of insufficient originality to qualify or any sort of copyright, we voluntarily grant a 25-year grace period for this type of edition as long as it is not published by a government agency. Assuming the Bopp edition has no original contributions by the editor - like a continuo realization - we would post the edition here with the urtext qualifier.