[Harbinger of DOOM]

Are you planning on using Star Wars music for your mod?
Just curious...

[Tempest]

No. We're planning on using the Star Trek music instead, because it's cooler. Also, we're going to have a Klingon battlecruiser instead of the Mon Calamari ships, because Klingons are awesome.

In all seriousness, we are going to use Star Wars music in some from, although we haven't descussed this topic in detail. We may just use the movie music, or it's possible we'll simply hire our own musician.

[Topgun]

is that legal? and @tempest did you get my pm?

[chief1983]

Getting something recomposed that sounds along the lines of Star Wars would be the best solution, but that's also going to take the most work.  It will probably not happen until this mod gets some huge publicity if it happens at all.

[aRaven]

i say we use the original music until lucasfilms oder arts forbid it!

[jr2]

  How about just asking Lucas himself?  I hear he likes fan art.  When you get your demo ready, throw together some missions & multi missions designed to impress, blow his socks off, (how to get ahold of him, IDK), and then ask him.  Worth a shot, though.  Better than getting his lawyers on your tail. 

[chief1983]

Yeah, he loves fan art.  That's why Galactic Conquest got screwed.

[jr2]

Hmm, I didn't know about that.  How about we steer clear of any legal problems with the music, then, and have it re-composed?  If possible.  I know blackhole is a composer.  Get him over here, see what he thinks.

[blackhole]

Well, jr2 has asked for me to give this a shot... Admitedly, i saw this thread and avoided posting in it because recreating music from another composer and retaining its feel is close to impossible. Whats more difficult is that while i'm a composer, all i have are synths. Star wars used an entire orchestra. It'd sound fake, weird, and not in the style of star wars. If i was rich and famous and had my own orchestra to play with, maybe, but recreating star wars music... Thats like asking a webcomic artist to recreate "Mona Lisa."

This being beyond my abilities as a composer is not the real problem, however. Fanboys..... Can you imagine the hell i'd be in if i had a hundred fanboys complaining the star wars music sounded fake? I mean, i could say "well, sorry," but that doesn't exactly help my position.

I would be willing to give it a shot, if not to stretch my musical talents and give them a good challenge, and i'm always willing to take on a music project regardless of how difficult it is. But in this case...? Fanboys are vicious creatures indeed, and i doubt my music would stand 10 seconds against them.

[chief1983]

Well, your worries are definitely founded, but as far as orchestras are concerned, I have a feeling that if someone composed it, we could get an orchestra somewhere to play it.  I mean, aren't most SW geeks in bands too?

[blackhole]

It would be very cool to have an orchestra play music i composed... I'd have to do a bit of research concerning proper orchestral arrangements though; they can be tricky to do properly. But finding an orchestra to play that music is a bit of a stretch. Yes, SW geeks are in bands, but a band with electric guitar and drums does not equate to an orchestra with violins and a brass section.

[chief1983]

Nah, I meant school orchestra type stuff.  If the publicity picked up well enough, I bet we'd find a large enough group of people with orchestral instruments to give it a go.  But that's assuming they have something to play .  Not pushing you or anything, it's up to you, and I don't think it's something we're absolutely going to have to do, or have you do, but I definitely think it would be cool if you feel up to it someday.  It's a ways off before we'd have a use for it though too.

[blackhole]

Well, currently i have just had an explosion of "Can you make music for us?" (I think this is the 3rd time today? Its gotta have something to do with my new song...) So, while thats nice in that it means i've gotten pretty good at composing, it means good byyyye free time. I'm thinking i might be able to do it later once i've got a better hold on what i'm doing and what i'm not doing, so keep me on your list for when you get to that point

[chief1983]

Will do.  In the meantime I'll be seeing what other options we have.  Maybe there's already some open source music we can use that's Star-Warsish.

[Harbinger of DOOM]

I think that if you edit music in any way, technically you can use it..........

Maybe shave a couple seconds off of each track?


I dunno, I'm probably wrong.........

[chief1983]

Editing like that typically means more than just shaving off time.  Usually it's more like, changing a couple of notes.  But it would have to be re-recorded with an orchestra, you can't just edit the original tracks.  Look at how Vanilla Ice used Queen's music, or how Eminem used AC/DC's.  Or how everyone and their mother used Pachelbel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdxkVQy7QLM

[MI123645]

I just got the greatest idea.


Let's use Pachelbel.

[Harbinger of DOOM]

LOL!

[blackhole]

Just editing a few notes isn't good enough to constitute it being different enough to use. Trying to pull that off is just asking for a lawsuit. You'd be better off with original compositions or just ripping off the music.

[chief1983]

Well I admit, claiming it as your own could be bad, but if you changed the notes and then credited it as being based on the original work, you'd probably be in about the same boat as if you just flat out ripped it.  I couldn't see it being any worse at least.