Cambridge University Press

a much needed guide to a fascinating aspect of European culture ... it is particularly welcome to have his findings presented in the form of a single extended account ... a useful and approachable... — Music and Letters More…

Cooke writes accessibly yet with as much intellectual rigor on the propagandistic songs of Shostakovich as on MTV's impact on Flashdance. ... Crammed with source acknowledgement for further... — BBC Music Magazine More…

I would recommend this book to every academic music library — Brio More…

For Purcell specialists and scholars, Martin Adam's Henry Purcell: The Origins and Development of his Musical Style will be essential reading ... perhaps the most in-depth study of Purcell's... — Sunday Times More…