‘Margaret Price sings consistently like an angel here, though it probably needs a human to inject such variety and ardour as we find throughout this recital … Price and Johnson are in wonderful accord, and in a year already notable for Lieder recitals this will take a high place’ (Classic CD)

‘Finley has carefully absorbed from his immortal predecessor the art of careful enunciation of every syllable in a natural but meaningful way … lovers of Schumann's Lieder and of great singing will not hesitate to plump for this stellar release; enthusiastically recommended’ (Fanfare, USA)

‘Op 39's settings of Eichendorff deal in dislocation, nostalgia and threatening landscapes. Gerald Finley and pianist Julius Drake are well attuned to those pervading atmospheres and psychological shifts; beginning with the veiled tone with which Finley opens Op 39 every song is individually coloured … and the text is always clear’ (The Guardian)

‘Julius Drake is perfectly attuned to the palette of shifting colours in Finley's dark baritone—here on top form’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘This new recording shows a greater richness in Finley's voice plus an evolving intimacy in his approach to recording Lieder … each song's overall conception—of which Julius Drake is a key part—reflects great thought as to its core emotion’ (Gramophone)

‘This disc presents a very fine performance of both the Liederkreise. Gerald Finley … sings Schumann with perceptive musical intelligence and a keen sense of the subtlety with which the composer places the vocal line over and through his piano writing. Finley is admirably accompanied throughout by Julius Drake … this is a disc to be admired and praised for Finley's and Drake's moving truthfulness to each song in both the Liederkreise. This is astonishing music, exceptionally well performed’ (International Record Review)

‘The whole programme is a delight, as both artists catch the music's poetic ebb and flow to perfection’ (The Sunday Times)

‘This music sings and soars, flying to the instrument's highest reaches with dreamy eloquence and a sense of rightness … he plays with fierceness and soul’ (The Observer)

‘A disc that all Schumann lovers will want to own’ (BBC Radio 3 CD Review)

‘This fabulously virtuosic and psychologically complex work [Violin Sonata] forces Isserlis's musicianship up to a new level … Isserlis masters its explosive flourishes and has the vital impetus to manke an eccentric work feel whole’ (BBC Music Magazine)

‘Enhanced by glowingly intimate sound from Andrew Keener and Simon Eadon, Isserlis constantly draws us in with playing of gentle radiance and exquisite nuancing … [Violin Sonata] sets the seal on one of Isserlis's finest discs’ (International Record Review)

‘Could this be his best recording yet? … [Fantasiestucke] has a wonderfully considered and luxuriant aspect; the results never sound contrived. That's partly to do with Isserlis's sound, which has a very focused centre to it, but also his utterly intimate relationship with pianist Dénes Várjon. Perhaps the most ravishing item on the disc is the poignant Abendlied … in his hands it's as moving a wordless Lied as anything you could imagine … for all that Isserlis has made many wonderful recordings, not least his seminal Bach suites, I think this might just be his finest yet’ (Gramophone)