Frank Martin: Concerto for 7 Wind Instruments, Percussion & Strings / Studies for String Orchestra / Erasmi monumentum - Matthias Bamert
Swiss composer Frank Martin was a curious character. The son of a  Protestant pastor, he combined French and German influences in typically Swiss  fashion, but also tonality, atonality, and an enlivening dose of jazz. He lived  a long and productive life, composed his own Requiem Mass (which he actually got  to perform and record to make sure he'd got it right), and then conveniently  died. This swinging concerto shows the jazz influence right at the start, where  each of the solos introduces itself in what sounds like an improvised jam  session. Of course the whole thing's composed with typical precision (Swiss,  like in watches, right?), but it's still one of the most entertaining of this  century's "group" concertos. This recording does it proud.--David  Hurwitz