Barry Cooper – författare

Originally published as the centenary celebration volume in the Master Musicians series, Barry Cooper's Beethoven incorporates international research on many aspects of the composer's life and work and presents these in a truly integrated narrative. His chronological approach enables each work to be seen against the musical and biographical background from which it emerged. The resulting highly readable confluence of life and work is made possible - and indeed required - by the fact that composition was Beethoven's central preoccupation for most of his life, and Cooper presents a clear picture of his day-to-day compositional activity. This volume concentrates on Beethoven's artistic achievements both by examining the origins of his works and by expert commentary on some of their most striking and original features. It also reexamines virtually all the evidence - from fictitious anecdotes right down to the translations of individual German words - to avoid recycling old errors. Cooper makes impressive use of Beethoven's sketch books and conversation books in a well-formulated effort to settle controversial matters - particularly those surrounding Anton Schindler, close associate of the composer during the 1820s and infamous subject of current discussion in Beethoven studies. A unique edition of Beethoven's correspondence rounds out this presentation of one of history's greatest composers. Offering a wealth of fresh conclusions and intertwining life and work in illuminating ways, Beethoven is an essential reference for students, scholars, and everyone interested in classical music.

Beethoven composed far more folksong settings than any other type of composition. Most are British songs, including Auld Lang Syne and the The Miller of Dee, with text by such authors as Burns, Byron and Scott. Yet Beethoven's settings, commissioned by George Thomson of Edinburgh, have been neglected by performers and scholars alike, and nearly all accounts of them are both superficial and startlingly inaccurate. This book is based on a very elablorate study of a wide range of sources, and dispels the many myths that have been circulating about this music. Every one of the 179 settings is dated to within a few weeks and an account is given of the souces of the melodies and texts, the difficulties of sending the music across Europe during the Napoleonic Wars (smugglers were even called upon to assist!), the fees Beethoven received, and when and how the texts were added. By comparing Beethoven's settings with those of his predecessors Pleyel, Haydhn and Kozeluch, the author demonstrates that Beethoven comprehensively transcended the bounds of convention, producing settings of extra-ordinary quality and originality. Suggestions are also made for overcoming the problems of presenting these songs in performance.

This major new study of Beethoven and his music is written as a single, continuous narrative, using a strictly chronological approach that enables each work to be seen against the musical and biographical background from which it emerged. The result is a much closer integration of life and works than is often achieved. The approach works particularly well for Beethoven for two reasons. Firstly, composition was his central preoccupation for most of his life: 'I live entirely in my music', he once wrote. Secondly, recent study of his large numbers of musical sketches has enabled a much clearer picture of his everyday compositional activity than was previously possible, leading to many new insights into the interaction between his life and music. The volume concentrates on Beethoven's artistic achievements both by examining the origins of his works and by commentary on some of their most striking and original features. Statements in earlier biographies have been treated with caution, and have been accepted only where they are supported by sound evidence.Everything-even down to the translations of individual German words-has been reassessed as far as is feasible, in an effort to avoid recycling old errors. Many well-known but fictitious anecdotes have thereby been eliminated, while conversely numerous details discovered in recent years have been incorporated into a general Beethoven biography for the first time-notably information derived from sketch studies and from a new edition for correspondence. This volume reaches many fresh conclusions that should be of interest to both specialists and the general musical public.

Using his background in political theory and philosophical anthropology, Barry Cooper is the first political scientist to propose new interpretations of some of the most famous extant Paleolithic art and artifacts in Paleolithic Politics. This book is inspired by Eric Voegelin, one of the major political scientists of the last century, who developed an interest in the very early symbolism associated with the caves and rock shelters of the Upper Paleolithic, but never finished his analysis. Cooper, who has written extensively on Voegelin's theories, takes up the enterprise of applying Voegelin's approach to an analysis of portable and cave art. He specifically applies Voegelin's philosophy of consciousness, his concept of the compactness and differentiation of consciousness, his argument regarding the experience and symbolizations of reality, and his notion of the primary experience of the cosmos to images previously regarded as pedestrian. Cooper demonstrates the political significance of the earliest expressions of human existence and is among the first to argue that political life began not with the Greeks, but 25,000 years before them. Archaeologists, prehistorians, and political scientists will all benefit from this original and provocative work.

Using his background in political theory and philosophical anthropology, Barry Cooper is the first political scientist to propose new interpretations of some of the most famous extant Paleolithic art and artifacts in Paleolithic Politics. This book is inspired by Eric Voegelin, one of the major political scientists of the last century, who developed an interest in the very early symbolism associated with the caves and rock shelters of the Upper Paleolithic, but never finished his analysis. Cooper, who has written extensively on Voegelin's theories, takes up the enterprise of applying Voegelin's approach to an analysis of portable and cave art. He specifically applies Voegelin's philosophy of consciousness, his concept of the compactness and differentiation of consciousness, his argument regarding the experience and symbolizations of reality, and his notion of the primary experience of the cosmos to images previously regarded as pedestrian. Cooper demonstrates the political significance of the earliest expressions of human existence and is among the first to argue that political life began not with the Greeks, but 25,000 years before them. Archaeologists, prehistorians, and political scientists will all benefit from this original and provocative work.

Few books in Canada empirically and systematically examine the role journalists play in the news-making process. While there are several books that look at how journalists do their jobs, and others that examine the political process, none - until now - have analyzed the opinions of journalists and how the news is reported.Focusing primarily on the political orientation of journalists, Miljan and Cooper investigate the link between what journalists believe about politics and how they report political issues. Using data gathered from interviews with over 800 Canadians and some 270 journalists, the authors compare how the attitudes of journalists differ from those of the general population, and how the journalists' opinions influence the daily news. By examining the way they respond to questions on the economy, social issues, and national unity, and comparing these responses with how the stories were reported in Canadian news outlets, the book arrives at the controversial conclusion that journalists, moreso than the owners of the media, are the architects of the news, engineering not only its drama, but also its ideological thrust.A must-read for anyone interested in politics and the media, this book should be read by journalists, politicians, academics, and all Canadians who are concerned about the hidden agendas of journalists.

In Child Composers and Their Works: A Historical Survey, Barry Cooper examines over 100 composers born before 1900 who wrote substantial musical works before age 16. The book provides a general overview of the subject, examining the ways and identifying possible reasons these works have been marginalized in the general literature. The book also contains an annotated checklist of over 100 notable child composers, presenting a valuable and handy reference of these creators and their early works.The annotated checklist presents a chronological listing of child composers born before 1900 and features a descriptive list of what they wrote, often including analytical commentary and offering occasional music examples for illustration. The list also includes a select catalog of works, suggestions for further reading, and recordings when available. Complete with a bibliography and an index of composers, this resource is invaluable to scholars and historians.

This important new work is a major analysis of the foundation of Eric Voegelin's political science. Barry Cooper maintains that the writings Voegelin undertook in the 1940s provide the groundwork for the brilliant book that is one of his best known, The New Science of Politics. At the time of that book's publication, however, few were aware of the enormous knowledge and accomplished scholarship that lay behind its illuminating, although sometimes baffling, formulations.By focusing on several of the key chapters in Voegelin's eight- volume History of Political Ideas, especially the studies of Bodin, Vico, and Schelling, Cooper shows how those studies provide the basis for Voegelin's thought. Investigating Voegelin's study of Oriental influences on Western political "ideas," especially Mongol constitutional law, and his study of Toynbee, Cooper seeks to demonstrate the vast range of materials Voegelin used.Cooper contends that, as with other great thinkers, political crisis, specifically the world war of 1939-1945, stimulated Voegelin's intellectual and spiritual achievement. He provides an analysis of Voegelin's immediate concern with the course of World War II, his ability to understand those dramatic events in a large context, and his ability to provide an insightful account of the causes, the significance, and the consequences of the spiritual and political disorder that was evident all around him.In Eric Voegelin and the Foundations of Modern Political Science, Cooper makes the connection between Voegelin's political writings of the 1940s and the meditative interpretations that began to appear with the publication of Anamnesis and with the later volumes of Order and History much more intelligible than does any existing discussion of Voegelin. Scholars in intellectual history and political science will benefit enormously from this valuable new addition to Voegelin studies.

Over the course of his varied and distinguished academic life, Eric Voegelin was often called upon by review editors of scholarly journals as well as by editors in the popular press to examine, summarize, and critically assess the work of other scholars, of statesmen, and of men of affairs. The contents of the books Voegelin reviewed mirror his changing interests over the years, including questions of method, points of legal philosophy and jurisprudence, and issues of race, war, and the afternath of war. Of course, he was frequently called upon as well to review standard texts and new editions and monographs across the full range of political science. This collection of Voegelin's reviews amounts to a reflection in miniature of many of the problems Voegelin tackled in his essays, articles, and books from the 1920s until the 1950s, when, owing to the press of other business, he began to decline requests to review the work of others. Some of his reviews are little more than clinical summaries; others are analytic essays. A few are extended engagements with a text or a set of problems. Occasionally, particularly among the later reviews originally written in English, one finds flashes of Voegelin's legendary wit and a restrained impatience with the inadequate approaches or sheer incompetence of others. These book reviews will be of interest to all students and scholars of Eric Voegelin's work.

Although his contributions to philosophy are revered and his writings have been collected, Eric Voegelin's persona will inevitably fade with the memories of those who knew him. This book preserves the human element of Voegelin by capturing those valuable personal recollections. Barry Cooper and Jodi Bruhn conducted intensive interviews with Voegelin's wife, his closest friends, and his first-generation students - many of whom have since passed on - in order to bring to print everything important about his life and personality. American scholars will especially appreciate the glimpses provided by Voegelin's German colleagues into his life in Munich, as well as the thoughts of his students in Vienna. Reflections of people such as Paul Caringella, Bruno Schlesinger, and Heinz Barazon capture Voegelin's greatness and shortcomings alike and also shed new light on his philosophical quest for truth. By descending progressively further into the past, the book takes readers deeper into the essence of Voegelin as reminiscences become more dramatic. Ranging widely from America back to Germany - with recollections of Gestapo intimidation and eventual emigration - episodes of pathos, humor, fear, rivalry, and ambition are interwoven throughout the accounts. We witness Voegelin's persistent and partly self-imposed communication problems and impatience with administrative duties, his respect for prudent political actors and public servants, and his genuine affection not only for his colleagues and best students but also for diligent secretaries and empathetic nurses. Through these recollections, key elements of his personality repeatedly emerge: his intelligence, optimism, and integrity, combined with an acute perception of the significance of his work. This is the most revealing and comprehensive biographical work yet available on a man known to be captivating as a thinker - and now shown to be equally fascinating as a human being. His own publications attest to his mind and methods; ""Voegelin Recollected"" provides a deeper understanding of the man himself.

Social work practice with children, young people and families is complex, highly skilled - and fascinating. Writing about social work increasingly acknowledges the complexities and uncertainties of practice but rarely features the voice of the social worker themselves. This book takes a different approach, that of Critical Best Practice: a constructive, realistic and strengths-based approach that takes as its starting point the telling and analysing of in depth stories about 'live' practice.The reader is encouraged to join the social work practitioner or manager as they engage with the everyday dilemmas and uncertainties of 21st century practice. Ten narratives, based round the themes of relationships, risk, and negotiation & problem solving provide varied opportunities for critical reflection and learning about social work in different contexts. Insights are offered into social work with children, from young babies to adolescents, and families with differing needs in different parts of the UK: England, Scotland and Wales.

Social work has laboured too long under a 'deficit' model that focuses on failings and problems of practice. Emphasising best practice, strengths and collaborative partnership this ambitious book seeks to redress the balance. Undergraduate and post-qualifying social work students alike will find it a useful resource.

This book offers an exploration of case-focused methods as a means of bridging the quantitative-qualitative divide and the key methodological issues. This book challenges the divide between qualitative and quantitative approaches that is now institutionalized within social science. Rather than suggesting the 'mixing' of methods, "Challenging the Qualitative-Quantitative Divide" provides a thorough interrogation of the arguments and practices characteristic of both sides of the divide, focusing on how well they address the common problems that all social research faces, particularly as regards causal analysis. The authors identify some fundamental weaknesses in both quantitative and qualitative approaches, and explore whether case-focused analysis - for instance, in the form of Qualitative Comparative Analysis, Analytic Induction, Grounded Theorising, or Cluster Analysis - can bridge the gap between the two sides.

This title offers an exploration of case-focused methods as a means of bridging the quantitative-qualitative divide and the key methodological issues. This book challenges the divide between qualitative and quantitative approaches that is now institutionalized within social science. Rather than suggesting the 'mixing' of methods, "Challenging the Qualitative-Quantitative Divide" provides a thorough interrogation of the arguments and practices characteristic of both sides of the divide, focusing on how well they address the common problems that all social research faces, particularly as regards causal analysis. The authors identify some fundamental weaknesses in both quantitative and qualitative approaches, and explore whether case-focused analysis - for instance, in the form of Qualitative Comparative Analysis, Analytic Induction, Grounded Theorising, or Cluster Analysis - can bridge the gap between the two sides.

Influenced by KojÈve's interpretation of Hegel as well as his direct political experience of the second world war, Maurice Merleau-Ponty abandoned the religious and philosophical position he had assumed in the 1930s and turned to Marxism. This is the first critical study of the French philosopher's political ideas and the context in which they evolved. In its origin and its development, Merleau-Ponty's political thought expressed a subtle dialectic between ongoing political events and the apparent truths of Marx's analysis. With the onset of the cold war, the discovery of the Soviet concentration camps, the repression of Eastern Europe, the Algerian crisis, and the founding of the Fifth Republic, Merleau-Ponty began to take a critical look at Marx's ideas of the genesis of humanism in the light of these disturbing political realities. His reconsideration of the basis of Marxism and his conclusion that it had lost contact with history led to a fundamental reorientation of his attitudes. No longer sympathetic to the use of violence to end violence, he criticized Sartre's external justification of communist violence as 'magical' and advocated instead a new liberalism combining parliamentary democracy with an awareness of the social problems of industrial capitalism.Barry Cooper's study of this important contemporary thinker gives context for an understanding of Merleau- Ponty's politics and, in so doing, brings together the complex issues and ideas that have shaped modern European political and philosophical thought.

History ended, according to Hegel according to KojÈve, with the establishment and proliferation in Europe of states organized along Napoleonic lines: rational, bureaucratic, homogenous, atheist. This state lives in some tension with the popular slogan that helped give it birth: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity. But there is now also totalitarianism – the only new kind of regime, according to Arendt, created since the national state. Man is now in charge of nature, technology, and society; much of political life has become a gavotte elaborating the meaning of the Napoleonic model.This interpretation, however opposed it seems to common sense, has been influential, particularly in France where the course of existentialism is unintelligible without taking it into account. Professor Cooper argues that it is inherently plausible and examines the arguments of Hegel and KojÈve to reveal its consistency and explanatory power. And he applies it to more contemporary events – the experience of the atomic bomb, the Gulag system of extermination, and the growth of multinational corporations.The work concludes by pulling together the presuppositions and theories of the totalitarian system, the Hegelian version of the Napoleonic state, and our contemporary technological society. Overall, the reader will find here a complete and challenging presentation of how the modern world understands its collective life.

Beethoven’s piano sonatas are a cornerstone of the piano repertoire and favourites of both the concert hall and recording studio. The sonatas have been the subject of much scholarship, but no single study gives an adequate account of the processes by which these sonatas were composed and published. With source materials such as sketches and correspondence increasingly available, the time is ripe for a close study of the history of these works. Barry Cooper, who in 2007 produced a new edition of all 35 sonatas, including three that are often overlooked, examines each sonata in turn, addressing questions such as: Why were they written? Why did they turn out as they did? How did they come into being and how did they reach their final form? Drawing on the composer’s sketches, autograph scores and early printed editions, as well as contextual material such as correspondence, Cooper explores the links between the notes and symbols found in the musical texts of the sonatas, and the environment that brought them about. The result is a biography not of the composer, but of the works themselves.

Beethoven’s piano sonatas are a cornerstone of the piano repertoire and favourites of both the concert hall and recording studio. The sonatas have been the subject of much scholarship, but no single study gives an adequate account of the processes by which these sonatas were composed and published. With source materials such as sketches and correspondence increasingly available, the time is ripe for a close study of the history of these works. Barry Cooper, who in 2007 produced a new edition of all 35 sonatas, including three that are often overlooked, examines each sonata in turn, addressing questions such as: Why were they written? Why did they turn out as they did? How did they come into being and how did they reach their final form? Drawing on the composer’s sketches, autograph scores and early printed editions, as well as contextual material such as correspondence, Cooper explores the links between the notes and symbols found in the musical texts of the sonatas, and the environment that brought them about. The result is a biography not of the composer, but of the works themselves.

Manchester Beethoven studies presents ten original chapters by scholars with close ties to the University of Manchester. It throws new light on many aspects of Beethoven’s life and works, with a special emphasis on early or little-known compositions such as his concert aria Erste Liebe, his String Quintet Op. 104 and his folksong settings. Biographical elements are prominent in a wide-ranging reassessment of his religious attitudes and beliefs, while Charles Hallé, founder of the Manchester-based Hallé Orchestra, is revealed to have been a tireless and energetic promoter of Beethoven’s music in the later nineteenth century.

Offers a unique investigation of the composition of the entire corpus of Beethoven's symphonies, reconstructing their creation through the most extensive study of Beethoven's sketches yet.Beethoven's nine symphonies are a cornerstone of Western classical music and have revolutionised it. Composers succeeding Beethoven found their output measured against this master's work. But how did his symphonies come into being and how did they reach their final form? These are the questions this book seeks to answer. Barry Cooper has been one of the leading advocates of the need for extensive studies of Beethoven's sketches, and we see him here applying his usual investigative rigour to the study of the symphonies. For most of the symphonies the sketches have not previously been fully examined. In contrast, Cooper's book provides a much deeper exploration of these sketches, along with autograph scores, corrected copies and first editions, while the Beethoven correspondence offers additional information on the first publication and performances of the symphonies. The result is a clear overview of the creation of each symphony in turn, placed within the context of musical life in Beethoven's Vienna. Another strand of the investigation covers Beethoven's unfinished symphonies and how they helped to provide the fertile soil from which the finished ones grew. Most of those did not progress beyond a few bars, but two, known as No. 0 and No. 10, were sketched extensively. This book therefore offers a unique investigation of the composition of the entire corpus of Beethoven's symphonies, reconstructing their creation from Beethoven's rather than posterity's viewpoint.

This stimulating guide will help students and their teachers to achieve stylish performances of music of the Classical period. Individual chapters from leading experts focus on historical background, notation and interpretation, and sources and editions, presenting the latest thinking on performance in a clear, helpful and practical way. There are also dedicated chapters of specialist advice for keyboard, string and wind players, and singers, plus a recommended playlist of illustrative, authoritative recordings. Fully illustrated throughout with many music examples, facsimiles and pictures, this is a valuable resource for students of the Classical period which will also add to the knowledge and understanding of amateur and professional musicians.