“These are songs for the still grey skies of winter, filled with yearning for the other – whether a love unrequited or lost, a life that falls bitterly short, a homeland viewed from exile – coloured with Newby’s elastic vocal tone, sense of drama and attentive articulation…This is a fine debut disc, its repertoire giving Newby ample chance to demonstrate his expressive and dramatic range.” ★★★★
“The lieder are arranged round Beethoven’s cycle of distant love, with two of Schubert’s Wanderer Songs and a Mahler group that combines rare communicative zeal with nuanced insights, in a notable debut.”
“Newby’s voice has plenty of weight and richness but can be surprisingly light on its feet; he and Middleton together hold Schubert’s Abendstern in rapt suspension, and in Im Freien Middleton’s gently pulsing piano conjures up the vastness of the starry sky.”
Finalist for Presto Recordings of the Year 2021