Wow. Turns out the arrangements of the national anthems being played at the Beijing Olympics are unauthorized, uncredited, and uncompensated copies of the 2004 Athens games. The Beijing Olympic Committee apparently transcribed and re-recorded the unique orchestral arrangements, over 200 pieces, by composer Peter Breiner. Though anthem melodies themselves are [mostly? all?] in the public domain, the orchestral arrangements and interpretations constitute new compositions under copyright law. Breiner’s label Naxos is currently getting the Great Stonewall of China over the issue.
Anthem Arrangements Raise A Red Flag Over Authorship [washpost]
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the making of, by greg allen