Rhythm and metre flowed in elusive cross currents.
The Times, 2001
…a lithe and nimble seas study.
BBC Music Magazine
Aquatic imagery abounds... ...and nowhere more clearly than the opening of Empty Fathoms by Alastair Stout. This is a beautifully controlled study in gently proliferating detail, impressionistic but with every detail counting…
The Classical Source, 2001
The programme included the beautiful, eerie Empty Fathoms...
The Wiltshire, 2001
The sounds of the deep sea were created by the harp, with the strings and winds contributing to the mysterious layers. There were waves too and a lovely viola passage. The wind parts were integrated into the texture and it is the chordal line which “uncoils through the ensemble and explores the harmonies and melodies of which it is capable”. This is a well written work which was expertly played.
Clarinet & Saxophone, Winter 2006