The wanderer bids farewell to his lover and steps out into the night. Why does he leave? Where is he going? We don’t know. The journey is the thing.

Franz Schubert’s song cycle, A Winter’s Journey, sets the poems of Wilhelm Müller as a landscape of emotions from loneliness to courage.

Roadside features — a linden tree, an icy river, a malevolent crow — become characters in the drama, triggering old memories and new hope. And throughout it all, Schubert’s exquisite writing for voice and piano paints the emotional and physical surroundings in sound.

Internationally acclaimed tenor Allan Clayton returns to Australia following his celebrated performance in Brett Dean’s Hamlet. He’s joined by Australian pianist Kate Golla as Musica Viva Australia and Opera Australia reprise this unique presentation, framed by artist Fred Williams’ glowing paintings of Australia, full of distinctive characters, memories and hopes.

Director Lindy Hume maps the journey across a desolate terrain, while Tony Award nominated videographer David Bergman choreographs Williams’ paintings to colour, clash and illuminate this haunting atlas of the emotions.