Acclaimed Canadian cellist and composer Raphael Weinroth-Browne releases his highly anticipated third solo album Empyrean today, alongside the unveiling of its mesmerising final single, ‘Murmuration’ as he prepares to join Einar Solberg on his forthcoming European tour later this month. Created through Weinroth-Browne’s distinctive combination of live-looping, layered cello and effects, the track transforms the instrument into a vast, ever-shifting soundscape, with insistent rhythms and soaring melodic lines moving together in constant motion.
Originally composed for UK contemporary dance company James Wilton Dance and their production BACH Reimagined, ‘Murmuration’ draws inspiration from both J. S. Bach and trailblazing saxophonist Colin Stetson, its cyclical arpeggios forming the backbone of a piece that feels simultaneously organic, orchestral and otherworldly. Like the flock of birds from which it takes its name, multiple individual voices converge into a single, constantly evolving whole, gathering momentum before ultimately dissolving into an endless horizon.
Watch the video: https://youtu.be/afffd2Y-JPo
Order Empyrean album here: https://raphaelweinroth-browne.bandcamp.com/album/empyrean
Comments Raphael: "'A murmuration is a large flock of birds that soar and swoop together in synchrony, forming one unified ever-changing shape. When I play this piece I am reminded of birds diving and ascending over ocean waves, always in motion, with many individual parts moving as one collective whole. The way in which my compositions come together with live looping feels very similar, with multiple voices interweaving, forming a movement trail with sound. In this piece, insistent rhythms pulse with unrelenting drive while soaring lines reach ever higher, as if to touch the untouchable. At the end, the rhythms fall away and all the voices are unified, fading into an endless horizon.
"The simple but effective setting for the music video for 'Murmuration' recalls the Empyrean cover artwork with its shimmering gold stars and cathedral arch set against a backdrop of oceanic blue."
The track offers a fitting introduction to Empyrean, an album rooted in Weinroth-Browne’s fascination with transformation, impermanence and the space between the composed and the unpredictable. Across its pieces, the cello becomes less a traditional classical instrument and more a vehicle for creating entire worlds of sound, moving between intricate composition, ambient textures, repetition, distortion and experimentalism.
‘Murmuration’ arrives alongside the album’s release and follows the previously unveiled ‘Dissolution’, a mesmerising deconstruction of the Sarabande from Bach’s Sixth Cello Suite which gradually fractures from Baroque elegance into distortion, noise and near-abstract sound. Together, the two recent tracks capture the extraordinary breadth of Empyrean, music that can begin with a single cello voice and expand into something far larger, stranger and more elemental.
The origins of new album Empyrean itself are as cinematic as the music it contains. In 2024, Weinroth-Browne was commissioned by James Wilton Dance to compose an 80-minute score inspired by the music and legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach. What emerged became BACH Reimagined: a touring multidisciplinary work exploring immortality, artistic transcendence and the pursuit of the sublime through creation.
Rather than simply reinterpret Bach, Weinroth-Browne entered into dialogue with him across centuries. The resulting compositions fuse the purity and mathematical elegance of Baroque counterpoint with distorted textures, electronic ambience and towering rhythmic weight. Tracks such as 'Speed of Light' and 'Dissolution' plunge Bach-inspired motifs into vast storms of noise and metallic tension, while the meditative 'Sanctum' evokes Sufi mysticism and devotional stillness.
“At its core,” Weinroth-Browne explains, “Empyrean is about the search for the sublime. As artists, we spend our lives trying to create something that transcends the everyday, if only for a split second, as if to glimpse eternity through a keyhole.”
Captured at Union Sound Company in Toronto immediately following the sessions for 2025’s critically acclaimed Lifeblood, Empyrean finds Weinroth-Browne operating at the peak of his creative powers. The album was recorded and engineered by Darren McGill (Rush, The Dirty Nil), mixed by Adam Noble (Leprous, Katatonia) and mastered by Robin Schmidt (Leprous), resulting in a sound both immense and intimate, every bow stroke preserved with almost tactile immediacy. Artwork comes from London-based printmaker and collage artist Cally Conway, discovered by Weinroth-Browne in Brighton during the BACH tour.
Watch the videos for previous singles 'Speed of Light', 'Reflection' and 'Evocation', and discover Raphael's breathtaking standalone interpretation of Sleep Token's 'Fall For Me' released last month, showcasing yet another side of his remarkable artistry.
The new release follows a run of widespread critical acclaim. His 2020 debut Worlds Within was praised as "masterful" and "a stunning example of less being more," while 2025's Lifeblood saw Raphael further expand his sound into rich cinematic territory, earning praise as "a triumph of vision and virtuosity" and "the most ambitious album of Weinroth-Browne's career."
That same fearless boundary-pushing has made Weinroth-Browne an essential figure within modern progressive music. His cello work can be heard on hundreds of studio albums, including Woods of Ypres’ Juno Award-winning W5: Grey Skies & Electric Light and across many major film and TV soundtracks. Viral interpretations of Opeth, Katatonia and Steven Wilson have drawn direct praise from the artists themselves, further cementing his reputation as a boundaryless interpreter and composer.
Since joining Norwegian prog visionaries Leprous in 2016, he has performed over 200 shows worldwide and contributed to three of their studio albums, helping redefine the role of cello in progressive heavy music. Beyond Leprous, he has shared stages with Evanescence, Apocalyptica and Devin Townsend.
As a solo artist, Weinroth-Browne has become an ambassador for what the cello can be in the 21st century. He has made waves at prestigious festivals such as the Cello Biennale Amsterdam and the International Cello Festival of Canada and has opened for artists ranging from Polish neoclassical pianist Hania Rani to Nordic folk ensemble SKÁLD and Danish prog metal masters VOLA.
With a busy year of live performances, including a recent European tour with Earthside and an upcoming run alongside Einar Solberg, Raphael Weinroth-Browne continues to expand the possibilities of the cello. With Empyrean arriving later this year, he further cements his reputation as one of the instrument's most adventurous and distinctive modern voices.
Catch Raphael Weinroth-Browne live on the following dates:
September 18 – The Garage, London, UK (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 19 – Café de la Danse, Paris, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 20 – Le Rex, Toulouse, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 21 – La Rhapsodie, Biarritz, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 22 – Mouco, Porto, Portugal (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 23 – República da Música, Lisbon, Portugal (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 25 – Be Prog! My Friend, Barcelona, Spain (with Einar Solberg)
September 26 – L’Ampérage, Grenoble, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 27 – Euroblast Festival, Cologne, Germany (with Einar Solberg)
September 29 – Hype Park, Kraków, Poland (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 30 – Lido, Berlin, Germany (solo and with Einar Solberg)
October 1 – Gebläsehalle, Neunkirchen, Germany (solo and with Einar Solberg)
October 2 – Werkk Kulturlokal, Baden, Switzerland (solo and with Einar Solberg)
October 4 – ProgPower Europe, Baarlo, Netherlands (with Einar Solberg)
October 7 - Queens Hall Arts Centre, Hexham, UK (BACH Reimagined with James Wilton Dance)
October 23 - Guelph, ON - Silence
October 24 - Guelph, ON - Silence
October 29 - Toronto, ON - Burdock Music Hall
November 6 - Ottawa, ON - Carleton Dominion Chalmers Centre
November 12 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Pumpehuset - supporting Lamentari
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