Beethoven Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel

[choul]

If I want to download one of the scores of Beethoven, published by Leipzig Breitkopf & Hartel like for example:

http://imslp.org/wiki/Ecossaise,_WoO_23 ... wig_van%29

and I click on the name of the publisher, I see the following editors:

* Guido Adler (1855-1941)
* Selmar Bagge (1823-1896)
* Ferdinand David (1810-1873)
* Franz Espagne (1828-1878)
* Eusebius Mandyczewski (1857-1929)
* Martin Gustav Nottebohm (1817-1882)
* Carl Reinecke (1824-1910)
* Ernst Friedrich Richter (1808-1879)
* Julius Rietz (1812-1877)

The last editor died in 1941 so I would think that it is pd in 2012 in the EU, but looking at the codes, I see V/V/V

I'm trying to understand the copyrights and when I see this I don't understand it anymore. Can someone explain me please
why it is public domain in the EU?

The Ecossaise was only meant as an example because there are a lot of those Breitkopf scores on IMSLP.

[KGill]

Not all of those editors edited every volume of the series. Serie 25 (which includes that Ecossaise) was edited by Mandyczewski, who died in 1929. In addition, probably even volumes edited by Adler are PD in the EU because they're considered to be urtext (which gets a copyright of 25 years from publication in most EU countries).

[vinteuil]

Actually, Adler only edited 2 pieces, neither of which IMSLP has.

[choul]

Thanks a lot both of you!
I searched already in the Dutch law but couldn't find anything about 'urtext' editions. But if Adler only edited 2 pieces it doesn't matter anymore.