This 2024 release, which hit classical best-seller charts in the spring of that year, completes the trilogy of
Schubert
's big three song cycles by rising baritone
Andrè Schuen
. This recording was made in 2019, prior to those of
Schwanengesang, D. 957
(made in
2021
), and
Die schöne Müllerin, D. 795
2020
). Yet in the ordering in which they have been released, the grim
Winterreise, D. 911
, makes a convincing finale. This speaks well of
Schuen
's ability to think through these complex song cycles; one might quibble with an individual interpretation or two, but he is undeniably very strong throughout, and he has delivered some of the premier
readings of our time. His
Winterreise
is emotive but not inward and wonderfully controlled.
is a bit operatic, seeming to be in conversation with the crow in
Die Krähe
, but he yields to no one in introspection with the deep inwardness of
Auf dem Flusse
and its wild chromatic modulations. There is a lot of intensity in most of
's readings, and accompanist
Daniel Heide
is sensitive to their ebb and flow. However, he is able to leave limpid melody alone, where it occurs in
Der Lindenbaum
and elsewhere. Once again,
has delivered
that repays multiple hearings, and he is sounding more and more like one of the major baritones of the day. ~ James Manheim