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“…in…Bax's storm-tossed Second Violin Sonata… these dashingly poised newcomers give of their considerable best, with CBSO leader Laurence Jackson formidably secure in the solo part's more scarily vertiginous exploits. …what lifts this collection into the indispensable category are the spellbinding performances... of the darkly smouldering Legend and Ballad... as well as the Allegro appassionato in G minor... and unpublished F major Sonata of 1928...” Gramophone Magazine, Janurary 2008

“Jackson and Wass are well acclimatised to Bax's elusive idioms, and Jackson's sensitivity and sustained singing tone in places such as the Legend and the slow movement of the Second Sonata are as admirable as Wass's command of the often challenging piano parts in the fiercer movements.” BBC Music Magazine, January 2008 ****

“Cast in four linked movements and held together by a motto theme which also appears in the 1917 tone-poem November Woods, Bax's storm-tossed Second Violin Sonata was conceived during the summer of 1915 at a time of great personal upheaval for the 31-year-old composer and comprehensively overhauled six years later. Be it in the seductive sway of the second movement (a ghostly waltz enigmatically entitled 'The Grey Dancer in the Twilight') or hair-raising final climax prior to the ecstatically serene epilogue, these dashingly poised newcomers give of their considerable best, with CBSO leader Laurence Jackson formidably secure in the solo part's more scarily vertiginous exploits. No one coming to this music for the first time will be left unstirred by its piercing beauty, urgency of expression and vaulting ambition.
In any case, what lifts this collection into the indispensable category are the spellbinding performances of the darkly smouldering Legend and Ballad from 1915 and 1916 respectively, as well as the Allegro appassionato in G minor (a likeable student effort from 1901) and unpublished F major Sonata of 1928 (which Bax subsequently recast as his captivating Nonet). The Potton Hall sound in these last four items (emanating from sessions a year after those for the Second Sonata) is particularly handsome and true, and the disc as a whole represents yet another 'must have' within this extensive series.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“The familiar piece here is the Ronde des lutins, a much-recorded perpetuum mobile, whose showy style of writing informs a great deal of the music, alternating with a line in sentimental melodies. Chloë Hanslip responds to both sides of Bazzini, and she's always rhythmically alert, whether in the rubato in the slower pieces, or the control of the cascades of notes in the faster ones.” BBC Music Magazine, October 2008 ****

“Among 19th-century violinist/composers, Antonio Bazzini was probably the most successful in escaping from exclusive specialisation in the virtuoso repertoire. His compositions include operas, sacred music, orchestral works and chamber music, so it's rather sad that he should be remembered today by a single piece, the scintillating Ronde des lutins ('Dance of the Goblins').
Chloë Hanslip demonstrates most persuasively that, even among his violin showpieces, it isn't a one-off. The items in her recital may make for fairly undemanding listening, the idiom may not be strikingly original, but Bazzini has the knack of integrating post-Paganini virtuoso features into a romantic style that's sophisticated, subtle and tasteful. The cantabile items are very appealing – the central Romance in the Trois morceauxen forme de sonate could rival the ubiquitous Massenet Méditation were it to become better known – and the Op 49 Etudes are particularly interesting, the first a moto perpetuo with very original accented dissonances, the second a delightful scherzo with elegant double-stopping and lively cross accents, and an unexpectedly lyrical central section.
Hanslip certainly has the confidence and technique for this repertoire: more importantly, she's able to engage with each piece, bringing out its particular expressive character. For the Romance in Op 44, for instance, she produces a soft, sensuous tone, quite different from her sound in the plaintive, ornate Nocturne from Op 41. Caspar Frantz accompanies very stylishly throughout, and Hanslip's musical personality, graceful and with spontaneous verve, brings everything to life.
It's lovely violin-playing!” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“…Bazzini has the knack of integrating post-Paganini virtuoso features into a romantic style that's sophisticated, subtle and tasteful. Hanslip… has the confidence and technique for this repertoire: more importantly she's able to engage with each piece, bringing out its particular expressive character. It's lovely violin playing!” Gramophone Magazine, Awards Issue 2008

“The performances, by a North American team using copies of early 19th-century instruments, are accomplished and characterful…” BBC Music Magazine, September 2004 ***

“The charming assortment of dances and Bagatelles on this disc puts the more famous work into a fine musical perspective” Classics Today