Marc Coppey

In 1988, the music world was taking notice of the eighteen-year-old Coppey, winner of the two highest awards at the Bach competition in Leipzig – first prize and a special prize for the best interpretation of Bach. The previous year he had won 1st prize in the International Competition of Young Soloists in Douai.

Singled out early on by Yehudi Menuhin, he made his début in Moscow and Paris in the Tchaïkovsky Trio with Menuhin and Victoria Postnikova, at a concert filmed by Bruno Monsaingeon. Rostropovitch invited him to the Evian Festival, and from that moment his solo career took off. He has been a soloist with orchestras under the baton of conductors Emmanuel Krivine, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Michel Plasson, Jean-Claude Casadesus, Theodor Guschlbauer, John Nelson, Raymond Leppard, Erich Bergel, Alan Gilbert and Asher Fisch.

Passionately fond of chamber music, Marc Coppey has explored and performed the repertoire with artists such as Maria-Joao Pires, Stephen Kovacevich, Nicholas Angelich, Aleksandar Madzar, Michel Beroff, Michel Dalberto, Peter Laul, Augustin Dumay, Victoria Mullova, Ilya Gringolts, Laurent Korcia, David Grimal, Gérard Caussé, Janos Starker, Marie-Pierre Langlamet, Michel Portal, Paul Meyer, Emmanuel Pahud and the Prazak and Talich Quartets. From 1995 to 2000 he was a member of the Ysaÿe Quartet, and with them, performed at the most prestigious concert venues in the world. Marc Coppey has performed in London, Berlin, Paris, Dublin, Prague, Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, Tokyo or Seoul. He is regularly invited to the festivals of Radio-France-Montpellier, Strasbourg, Besançon, La Roque d’Anthéron, Stuttgart, Midem, Kuhmo, Korsholm or Prades. Marc Coppey’s choice of repertoire is eclectic and innovative. He frequently plays the complete Bach Suites and well-known and loved concert repertoire, as well as bringing to the public’s attention works that are rarely heard. The performance and promotion of contemporary music holds a great interest for him, and composers such as Krawczyk, Lenot, Monnet, Reverdy and Tanguy have all dedicated works to him. He gave the world premières of Lenot’s Concerto, and of Tanguy’s 1st Concerto.

Marc Coppey’s many fine recordings have received lavish praise from the critics. They include works by Beethoven, Debussy, Emmanuel, Fauré, Grieg and Strauss, produced by the labels Auvidis, Decca, Harmonia Mundi and K617. His latest releases are the complete Bach Suites (which was awarded Télérama’s ffff ) and a CD dedicated to Dohnanyi (which featured in the “10 de Répertoire”), both recorded for the Aeon label, and he joined the Prazak Quartet to record the Schubert Quintet for the Praga label. Early 2006 has seen the release of two more CD recordings: one of the great Russian cello sonatas, played with pianist Peter Laul (on the aeon label) and the other a performance of Martin Matalon’s concerto (on Accord/ Universal).

Marc Coppey combines his solo career with a concern for teaching: he is a professor at the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique de Paris and gives master-classes all over the world. He himself attended Philippe Muller’s class in the Paris Conservatoire, graduating at the age of seventeen with a Premier Prix, and a special jury award, before being awarded a French Government scholarship to study with Janos Starker in Bloomington, Indiana, USA. He also benefited from the guidance of Paul Tortelier.

He is Artistic Director of Colmar chamber music festival.

Marc is passionately fond of chamber music and has played with many famous musicians including Stephen Kovacevich, Ilya Gringolts, Maria-Joao Pires, the Prazak and Talich Quartets.  He appears at festivals throughout Europe, and his many fine recordings have received lavish praise from the critics.  He combines his solo career with a concern for teaching and is a professor at the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique de Paris.