Saxton’s Sonata for Cello on a Theme of Sir William Walton, like much of his other work at the festival, is densely patterned and rigorously argued.

This was Saxton at his best: flexible, lyrical song-like lines mixing traditional elements and new striking piano textures.

Saxton captured Spencer’s sense of mystical fantasy in a piece full of invention and striking writing for strings.

Vibrant, attractive… splendid.

'The Maxwell Quartet... played Saxton's String Quartet No. 3 (2011), capturing the contrasting character of each of the five movements with titles which as Winter Light and Dance. Ideas reveal and hide themselves in constant, delicate oscillation. In one (Sea Ground), he uses a passacaglia, mirroring the repeated yet changing action of the sea. This music, in this performance, had a mystery, delicacy and depth which made you want to hear it again immediately. What an exhilarating start to 2015.

'Saxton's glistening, subtle Hortus Musicae (2013), inspired by the notion of a metaphysical garden.'

 

'Drawing on a wide range of influences from his Jewish roots to the relationship between mathematical and music principles... his considerable technique and imagination make for writing of compelling melody (though not always in the conventional sense) and of richly organic background texture.'