Catalogue

“Phan’s deceptively halcyon tenor—clear and crystalline, but able, on a dime, to reflect the explosive storms of human experience—is an ideal vehicle for the emotional capaciousness that Muhly gives his texts.” – Olivia Giovetti, Van magazine

“Muhly’s sensitive handling of text adds variety even as his musical language remains consistent. Phan’s commitment to these pieces is palpable…Phan’s duet work with countertenor Reginald Mobley in Lorne Ys My Likinge is absolutely delicious” – All Music

“Phan’s singing … is both direct and otherworldly…Phan has made his mark as a purveyor of songs, and his recordings of the works of Benjamin Britten and the French and German masters of song are salient and lasting. Here he finds another level of engagement with both words and music. His voice, now full, virile, and seasoned, carries with that taut relaxation encountered only in mastery of the first order. Together he and Muhly make music at once deeply personal and yet purged of easy sentimentality.” – Bay Area Reporter

“Phan, for whom Stranger was written, sings it all magnificently. Each word projects with clarity and intensity, from the recitative-like, syllabic opening movement to the gorgeous, high-tessitura setting of Leviticus and through the furious (timeless?) observations of institutionalized racism.” – Arts Fuse

“this tour de force collaboration with Nico Muhly … his vocal writing, especially with Phan, is inspired and captivating … Don’t miss this.” – American Record Guide

“Phan easily inhabits the emotions, struggles and experiences of each speaker and circumstance, bringing them together in one unified voice while still maintaining their individual humanity.” – Opera News

“Muhly knits together [the texts] with characteristic empathy, and his Brittenish writing for piano and voice is suffused with warmth and bleakness. The clarity of Phan’s singing and, on Lorne ys my Likinge, that of the countertenor Reginald Mobley, gives the texts emotional force.”★★★★ – Sunday Times

“This personal and deeply-felt album from star tenor Nicholas Phan offers a powerful exploration of what ‘national identity’ might mean…Muhly’s crisply unsentimental settings afford due space to these insightfully-chosen texts and Phan’s crystal-clear delivery is beautiful in its restraint.” ★★★★ – BBC Music Magazine

“Stranger attains much of its subtle power and coherence through Phan’s distinctive performance, whose voice shifts from the almost clipped, newsreel-like intonation of the opening and end sequences of the cycle to more dramatic and full-toned lyrical moments in between.” – Gramophone

“The heart immediately opens at the sound of Phan’s voice … Stranger is a must” – San Francisco Classical Voice

“a gripping listening experience and, first and foremost, once again shows Nicholas Phan to be an outstanding singer with clear diction and impeccable vocal delivery who excels in the song repertoire.” ★★★★★ - Pizzicato

Twice Grammy-nominated tenor Nicholas Phan is “one of the world’s most remarkable singers” (Boston Globe). Nico Muhly is one of today’s most sought-after composers. Nick and Nico’s collaboration began with a commission when Nick curated a series for the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society in 2020. The resulting song cycle, Stranger, finds common ground in the musicians’ reflections on identity and immigration, themes that resonate as much today as they have through the centuries. This world-premiere recording of Stranger compliments Nico’s Lorne Ys My Liking, a setting of the 19th Chester Mystery Play, and Impossible Things, a triptych of poems by the Greek poet C.P. Cavafy. Nick has recorded with a roll call of collaborators: the adventurous string quartet Brooklyn Rider, shimmering countertenor Reginald Mobley, bold pianist Lisa Kaplan, and transformative Brooklyn-based collective The Knights led by brothers Colin and Eric Jacobsen.