In view of the significance of the collection and the possibilities for publication it presents, an Editorial Board has been formed consisting of Hazel Hyde, composers David and Colin Matthews, and musician Mark Doran, with the association also of Justin Broackes, an academic with interests in the philosophy of music.īroackes said: "An extraordinary man with extraordinary gifts, Cooke dedicated decades of detailed work to a series of ambitious and interconnected projects. The fact that his large-scale book on this subject was uncompleted at his death makes the manuscript materials in the collection of particular interest. He was also a renowned authority on Wagner and the massive operatic tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen. Work has already started on sorting and cataloguing the collection, thanks in part to an anonymous donor in the United States whose gift has been made through the organisation Cambridge in America.Ĭooke was a leading expert on the music of Mahler, and a significant part of the collection relates to his work on the 10th Symphony.
It is splendid to know the material will now be accessible to scholars who want to increase understanding of his work." He went to Cambridge as an organ scholar, and he greatly valued his time there. Hyde said: "I am very pleased that Deryck's papers have found a safe home at the University Library. The majority of items, however, relate to Cooke's activities as a writer and broadcaster between 19. The collection contains materials relating to all aspects of Cooke's life and work, including juvenilia and documents from his student days at Selwyn College, Cambridge as well as his service in the Royal Artillery during World War Two.
The material has been donated to the Library by Hazel Hyde, who was Cooke's partner for the last six years of his life and has kept the collection intact since his sudden death at the age of 57. Musicologist Cooke is perhaps best known for his 1959 book The Language of Music and his work on a 'performing version' of the unfinished draft of Mahler's 10th Symphony, the first version of which was performed at the 1964 Proms.