This hugely enjoyable recital anthologises a manuscript collection of instrumental music copied on the edge of the Black Forest in the mid- to late 17th century and named after its scribe, Franz Rost, an itinerant priest and musician. It contains many pieces by Schmelzer and in other ways it reflects the Habsburg court of composer-Emperors Ferdinand III and his son Leopold I (notably the presence of Italian musicians, also generously represented here). Schmelzer’s poignant lament for his imperial patron is one of the highlights of the disc, and his homage to Polish soldiers and their bagpipers is another little gem. The weird chant quotation (from the Te Deum?) is one of several whimsical touches that abound throughout this remarkably well chosen and well-constructed recital; yet another, the startling key-change in the middle of the Sonata a tre violini (at 3'30"). But there’s comparable incident among the anonymous pieces, which testify to Rost’s sure taste.

Open Chamber bring the music to life with zest and vigour. Unsurprisingly, a recorder often takes on one of the violin parts, but the inclusion of a hammered dulcimer, a triple harp and a bagpipe imparts a military and exoticising flavour. (The patchwork Empire was constantly at war and the threat of invasion from the Ottoman Empire never far away.) This flexible approach to instrumentation is always neatly managed, never overdone. There’s nothing groundbreaking in the approach to programming but there are no gimmicks either. It’s all just done very stylishly.