"Included in the Top 10 Contemporary Classical Albums of 2018" — Paul Driver
Saxton's work united craftsmanly rigour and a wide-ranging fantasy, the latter quality being explicit here in a double sequence entitled Hortus Musicae, Book 1 and Book 2. These "musical gardens" variously invoke what he calls a "sacred space", taking inspiration from Marvell, Auden, the Song of Solomon and even Proust, in the beautiful reminiscences of Beech Bank (A la recherche). Hammond begins her deft recital with the Chacony for Piano Left Hand and single-movement Sonata.