Though a nobleman by birth, Benedetto Marcello was a serious amateur composer who wrote in many of the genres of his day. This 3 CD set focuses on his 12 concertos for strings and 5 sinfonias, both dating from the latter half of his composing career. What Benedetto's work lacked in compositional virtuosity they made up for in sheer inventiveness and quirky detail. A captivating release that documents the early development of two important forms with extraordinary playing by I solisti di Milano.