I'm considering using one of the following pieces of music for a commercial (advertisement of my book):
- Richard Wagner, Ride of the Valkyries
- Carl Orff, Carmina Burana, O Fortuna - Fortune plango vulnera
- Shostakovich, Symphony No. 5 - Finale
- Gustav Holst, The Planets - Mars, the Bringer of War
Which options do I have, in order to do it legally, provided that
- my product will be sold primarily via American Amazon store (hence, I must design the ad so that it complies with US laws) and
- I need the ability to legally remix the record (i. e. cut out pieces of it, make it shorter)
?
From my point of view, I can do in several ways:
- Purchase the rights from the performers (e. g. some orchestra) to use one of their records in a commercial.
- Sign a "work-for-hire" contract with a musician. He or she will play that piece of music and the rights for the record will belong to me.
- Use a record in public domain.
All these options theoretically give me the rights for the recording (audio version of the work). But I'm not sure if the copyright holders of the notes/score version of that music (e. g. relatives of R. Wagner, C. Orff, D. Shostakovich and G. Holst) can't sue me for copyright infringement (or do any other legal action).