Mozart Sonatas for Keyboard and Violin Vol.4, Channel Classics

“ Cooper and Podger have rightly been showered with critical acclaim and awards ”

Mozart’s sonatas for keyboard and violin have never lacked advocates on disc, although complete recordings are rare these days. Playing on period instruments (a modern copy of a fortepiano of 1795 by Mozart’s favourite maker, Anton Walter, and a Pesarinius violin of 1739), Cooper and Podger have rightly been showered with critical acclaim and awards for this series, and Volume 4 maintains the high standards. The masterpieces here – the two-movement sonata in E minor, K304, and the penultimate A major work, K526 – are thrown into stark relief by the juvenilia: K9, written when Mozart was eight in 1764, and K29, from 1766. The decision not to programme chronologically offers a snapshot of Mozart’s burgeoning genius within each disc rather than over the whole set. Podger and Cooper play with exquisite care for detail, beguiling phrasing and panache.

The Sunday Times, 2007

Mozart Sonatas for Keyboard and Violin Vol.4, Channel Classics

“Suffering from Mozart fatigue ... rejuvenation is immediate ... Magnificent Mozart playing from a terrific duo.”

Suffering from Mozart fatigue from last year’s centenary wallow? Listen to Cooper and Podger and rejuvenation is immediate. The fourth CD in their keyboard and violin cycle criss-crosses between sonatas early and late. Pianos can be dull dogs, but not in Gary Cooper’s case – he is nimble and expressive. And nothing is beyond Rachel Podger’s gut-string violin, not even silky delicacy. Magnificent Mozart playing from a terrific duo.

The Times, 2007

English Touring Opera / Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail

I'd rather just revel in Mozart's marvellous score ... busting out all over with youthful exuberance. Gary Cooper's sparkling conducting did it justice.

The Telegraph, 2007

Mozart Sonatas for Keyboard and Violin Vol.3, Channel Classics

“ … The most enjoyable Mozart disc so far this year. ”

Forget recent competition in these violin and keyboard sonatas: the honours go to Rachel Podger and Gary Cooper’s series on period instruments. Gut strings and the fortepiano’s dry attack encourage playing with character and snap; but the ultimate delight is the absorption and flair of Podger and Cooper. The music ranges from a kid’s trinkets to the big sweep of K454. The most enjoyable Mozart disc so far this year.

The Times, 2006

They played Mozart’s dramatic E minor sonata, K 304, and Beethoven’s assuaging “Spring” sonata, Op 24, in a way that made it impossible to separate brilliance from thoughtfulness, precision (fantastic keyboard roulades) from a sweeping sense of architecture.

The Sunday Times, 2006