COLIN COOPER
Colin Cooper was born in Birkenhead, England, in 1926. His training as an aeronautical engineer was interrupted by active service in the Second World War, after which he turned his hand to writing, becoming active in rural community drama and, later, national radio. A television play won a prize in 1969, by which time he was writing sci-fi and crime fiction for various London book publishers. Music was a powerful attraction from an early age. At various times he studied violin, viola, piano, and mandolin. It was not until the age of 36, that he discovered the enormous potential of the guitar and felt able to concentrate in one specific direction. He studied the instrument with Gilbert Biberian and became a teacher in the Inner London Education Authority's adult education scheme. In 1972 he joined a partnership (soon dissolved) formed for the purposes of creating Guitar magazine (later Guitar International), the first four issues of which were published from his house in north London. He has contributed to many other international publications including the Tokyo magazine Gendai Guitar, for which he wrote a monthly column for 15 consecutive years. In 1982 Colin Cooper accepted an invitation from Maurice Summerfield to be the first News Editor of a new monthly magazine, Classical Guitar. He later became Features Editor and, over the ensuing 19 years, played a significant part in the general shaping of the magazine's policy. His continuing interest in the developing guitar scene takes him to many international guitar festivals. He has lectured in countries as diverse as France, Italy, Croatia, and Turkey, and frequently serves on the juries of international guitar competitions.