A French court has ruled that Boléro, one of the best-known works of classical music in the world, was written by Maurice Ravel alone, in a verdict on a case with big financial stakes that could have taken the work out of the public domain.
Ravel first performed Boléro at the Paris Opera in 1928 and it was an immediate sensation. He died 10 years later and his heirs were paid millions of dollars until the copyright ran out in 2016.
In France, copyright usually runs for 70 years after a composer’s death, though some years were added to make up for losses during the second world war.
The heirs of Alexandre Benois, a celebrated stage designer who worked on the original performance of Boléro, had argued that he should have been credited all along as a co-author and demanded a share of the proceeds. And because Benois died in 1960, if the court had ruled in their favour, that would have put Boléro back under copyright until 2039.
A lawyer for the Benois estate told a French court in February that “the music of the Boléro was created especially for the ballet” and should not be considered a standalone piece of orchestra music.
Ravel’s estate had supported the claim that it was a “collaborative work” with the Russian set dresser, not least because it would start receiving copyright payments again. The claimants point to various documents that name Benois as a co-author of the music.
The successful side in the case was France’s Society of Authors, Composers and Music Publishers (Sacem), which says the claim of co-authorship is based on a “historical fiction”. Sacem points to an official declaration signed by Ravel in 1929 identifying him as the sole author.
Sacem’s lawyer said the rights had once generated “millions and millions of euros” a year, though this had fallen to an average of €135,507 (£115,000) annually between 2011 and 2016.