This is the curious story! She would no doubt make a good film script. With music by John Williams, it would be even better.
At the start, everything seems tidy at the end of the lake. The start of the concerts is going well, the Théâtre du Léman already has a plethora of concerts. On Wednesday January 8, for example, The Hollywood Symphony Orchestra plays the repertoire of John Williams. Symphonic training, popular film music, exactly what appeals to a large audience. The program features, among other famous themes: “The Teeth of the Sea”, “Star Wars”, “Indiana Jones”, “Harry Potter” and “E.T.”.
After the concert, many fans cry out in scandal. One of them informed the local press. Wasn’t the performance to his liking? Disastrous, in his opinion. Not only was the training of poor quality, but all the titles announced were not played and the evening was shorter than expected. All this for a substantial entry price, between 59 and 99 francs. “Only a violinist in” Schindler’s list “performed well,” said our informant, 39, himself a composer.
“Crumpled Tailcoat”
We will not comment further on the aesthetic qualities of this evening, failing to have attended. But there are other sources of amazement: the Hollywood Symphony Orchestra, a renowned Californian band, was not present that evening. His disgruntled admirers say they have been deceived.
Was it another orchestra, then? Certainly. The public should therefore have been informed. “As it would have been good to inform the spectators on the titles played,” adds our source. “However, nothing was specified, neither the identity of the conductor nor that of the musicians.” However, there was a conductor, “in a crumpled tail, like the sound of his orchestra”, indignant our man.
“I would like to know more too”
Call the Théâtre du Léman to find out more. Response from the Director General, Claude Proz: “On Wednesday, the musicians arrived at 5 pm. No one from the administration was present. So I would like to know more too. “Claude Proz did not attend the performance. “On the other hand, some of my friends were there, not unhappy about it. Surely they regretted not having more information about the program. “Who was playing that night? “I don’t know,” he confesses.
We then inquire about the identity, no longer of the orchestra, but of the organizer. In any case, not the Théâtre du Léman, which only rents the hall to external partners. Here is the company concerned: Euroconcert, that is his name, managed by Marian Banovski and Rolando Saad, has made a recent entry on the Geneva agenda. And noticed. For the beginning of the year alone, a dozen shows are expected at the Théâtre du Léman, including three “tribute bands”, groups specializing in covers of the Bee Gees, Simon & Garfunkel and Dire Straits (read below).
Euroconcert’s business is “shoveling” with spades, Russian-style entrechats and cinema hits. Each his own. From there to usurp the name of another orchestra? “Taking such a risk is not worth it,” warns Claude Proz. Even more so when the room, as was the case last Wednesday, is far from full. We’re looking for the end of the story. There would be a real Hollywood Symphony Orchestra, conducted by a film veteran, John Beal, known to have signed more than a thousand trailers. And if there were several, Hollywood thing stuff? In this case, should we not distinguish one from the other? The law is rather favorable to it (read below).
A history of license
Finally, it is up to the Junod study to give us an explanation. MePascal Junod, in charge of the legal file for the company Euroconcert, answers himself: “The North American orchestra has the exclusivity of this license for the United States and North America, but not for Europe , where the rights to exploit the name Hollywood Symphony Orchestra have been transferred to Euroconcert. My client is clear. “And the lawyer to produce, as a final argument, the license agreement, registered in 2015, valid until 2025.
On the other side of the world, however, the Hollywood Symphony Orchestra disagrees. On its official Facebook page, the Californian company, a renowned institution in film music directed by composer John Beal, says this: “Be careful, this group is not the real Hollywood Symphony Orchestra. The name belongs to us, it is a registered trademark. They ignored our warning letter. “Published on January 2, the information indicated, in a link, the evening organized at the Théâtre du Léman. Is Euroconcert aware of this dispute? When we finally reach his director Rolando Saad, the latter replies that, yes, he had to inform the American agent, to remind him of the existence of a European license. “We have nothing to blame ourselves for,” said the promoter. And MeJunod to drive the point home, placed in front of the offended notice of the American competitor: “We could attack them in libel.”
Next January 22, the Hollywood Symphony Orchestra, European license, will be back. At Victoria Hall this time, in the repertoire of this other huge film music star, Hans Zimmer. Case to follow.
Flirting with unfair competition
The Hollywood Symphony Orchestra case is instructive in more ways than one. His case, however, is not an isolated one. Problematic situations, playing in the same way with the limits of the acceptable, have become widespread. This evening, organized by ACT in November 2019 at the Arena, will be particularly mentioned: Hans Zimmer, announced in very large format in the center of the poster. The concert is entirely dedicated to the latest film music superstar (“Gladiator” and “The Dark Knight” among many others). However, the composer will not be present. Except that to find out, you must, first, understand what the “curated by Hans Zimmer” written on the poster signifies, and, second, read the very long presentation published on the website to learn, what? that the orchestra will be led by Gavin Greenaway, whom Zimmer “holds in high regard”.
We can also mention the evening dedicated to Ennio Morricone, this Friday at the Théâtre du Léman. Admittedly, the informed public does not expect to find the maestro, 91 years old. But all the same, it remains very discreet, the mention of the conductor, Marco Seco. Is the public deceived about the goods? In this case, what legal provision regulates this aspect?
Question posed to Nicola Meier, a lawyer specializing in artists’ rights: “We must separate the question of copyright, which concerns only the performers in this case, and the question of unfair competition. The latter is the subject of a law which prohibits the use of any unfair process to sell a product. For example, when announcing the arrival of a recognized orchestra around the world, when it is only a pale copy by amateur musicians, even if the “mark” of the orchestra n ‘is not protected, this constitutes a deception’. And Nicola Meier also evokes the many “tribute bands” currently in vogue: nothing prevents, he says, from playing the repertoire of another. “But the viewer should be aware that this is not the original.”
F. G.
Created: 09.01.2020, 11:10 p.m.
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