Schubert wrote Winterreise in the last year of his short life (he died at the age of 31 in 1828), one of two settings for piano and voice that he made from the poetry of Wilhelm Müller. The soul-shattering emotional depth of the music has attracted virtually all art singers (most notably the legendary Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, who recorded the music seven times). It is music that is so dramatically nuanced that no two performances are alike, and new versions tend to attract keen attention. Danish bass-baritone Jakob Bloch Jespersen has a chestnut-colored voice that he uses with sensitive attention to the meaning of the words he sings, without ever veering into emotional exaggeration. The quiet intensity of his delivery is enrapturing. Beyond the superb singing, there are two other features of this recording that distinguish it among so many storied versions. First, there is the use of a remarkable fortepiano, smartly played by Sharon Prushansky. The instrument has six pedals which can be used to create specific dramatic effects, such as a whispery tone, or a metallic voice that almost sounds electronic. And then there is quality of the recording, a given for this Danish label founded by musicians. Jespersen’s glowing voice floats in mid-air.