American Record Guide 2025 Critic’s Choice

Robin Stevens’ A Questing Soul, his fifth album with Divine Art, offers a compelling portrait of a composer whose work has evolved over nearly three decades. This collection spans a broad stylistic spectrum, charting Stevens’ progression from the lush Late Romanticism of his early works to the more dissonant and experimental idioms of his later compositions. Throughout, Stevens balances technical innovation with an underlying sense of lyricism, humour, and tonal clarity, making this album a rich listening experience for those who appreciate the depth and variety of contemporary chamber music.

The two most substantial works on the album—Fantasy Sonata and Sonata Tempesta—were composed during Stevens’ late twenties and represent key milestones in his early output. The Fantasy Sonata, written for violinist Christine Townsend and pianist Stephen Robbings, presents an intensely focused sound world built around the octatonic scale. Its single-movement structure moves from a soulful, lamenting introduction to more turbulent, faster sections, culminating in a joyfully intense peroration. Sonata Tempesta, in contrast, is a large-scale, four-movement work whose expansive form allows Stevens to weave together moments of lyrical beauty and stormy intensity. Both pieces showcase Stevens’ ability to combine complexity and accessibility, creating compositions that are intellectually stimulating yet emotionally resonant.

The album also includes a number of shorter works, or “miniatures,” which offer Stevens the opportunity to explore new compositional ideas on a smaller scale. Pieces like Stratospheric! for solo violin and Toccata for solo piano demonstrate his flair for virtuosity and dynamic contrasts, while others, such as Cri de Coeur, evoke more contemplative, intimate soundscapes. These miniatures are fascinating in their own right, offering a glimpse into the composer’s more experimental tendencies.

One of the album’s more unusual works, Scherzo in Blue, brings jazz influences into Stevens’ instrumental music—a rarity in his oeuvre. The piece is infused with “blue notes” and jazzy piano chords, creating a playful yet sophisticated contrast to the more classical structures found elsewhere on the album.

The title track, A Questing Soul, reflects the essence of the album: a compact tone poem for solo piano that alternates between dreamy lyricism and muscular, assertive themes. The piece encapsulates Stevens’ ability to juxtapose contrasting musical ideas, leaving listeners with as many questions as answers—an approach that defines much of his work.

With its blend of large-scale sonatas, experimental miniatures, and the intriguing title track, A Questing Soul offers a comprehensive view of Robin Stevens’ compositional range. This album will appeal to those with an interest in the intersections of modernism, Romanticism, and contemporary chamber music.

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