Ownership & rights
Public Domain Music
Public domain music is music whose copyright term has expired, so the work may be used without permission. The essential distinction is that expiry applies to the composition, not to recordings of it: a Vivaldi concerto is public domain, but a 2019 recording of that concerto is protected for decades.
In practice
Terms vary by jurisdiction — commonly life of the author plus seventy years in Europe — and sound recordings have their own, separate term. In practice this means a classical piece can be used freely only if you commission or license a recording of it, and modern editions of a score can carry their own protection. Recordings sold as "public domain" are frequently protected performances, and using one in an advert triggers a claim on the master even though the composition is free.
How SoniBuyout® handles it
A buyout removes the ambiguity entirely: one identified track, one documented transfer, both master and composition, with a certificate proving it. No jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction term calculation and no protected recording hiding behind a free composition.
Real questions
Can I use a public domain song in an advert?
The composition, yes. The specific recording, only if that recording is also out of copyright or licensed — which for any modern performance it is not.
Is public domain the same worldwide?
No. Terms differ by country, so a work in the public domain in one territory can still be protected in another — a real problem for global campaigns.
Related terms
Own the track instead of renting it
Sonify Music sells exclusive buyouts of catalogue tracks: one payment, full ownership, the track removed from sale and a named certificate of ownership.