The now 34-year-old saxophonist-composer Marius Neset showed early promise as a tough tenor with conceptual nous and a sound somewhere between Brecker and Garbarek, but has spent his career so far equally developing his undoubted compositional flair in a large ensemble context. Originally commissioned for the opening concert of Norway’s excellent Kongsberg Festival, Viaduct reunites him with the 19-piece world class London Sinfonietta, the orchestra with whom he recorded his 2016 release Melt. Viaduct is made up of two half-hour sections: the first is a sweeping symphonic-jazz concerto made up of six movements offering a snapshot of 20th-century classical composition filtered through an improvisational lens. Along the way there are echoes of the symphonic urban jazz of Leonard Bernstein, the string-laden cinematic ambience of an Aaron Copland or Samuel Barber, with the influence of Stravinsky and Messiaen scattered throughout. At times the Sinfonietta becomes an expressive backdrop to Neset’s blistering, sometimes jagged post-bop solos. The second section is a chance for his regular quintet to shine. Hints of Gershwin make way for a superb bluesy cool bop solo by vibraphonist Jim Hart; a haunting Bartókesque minimalism from the keys of pianist Ivo Neame. Neset’s free-funk jazz sax struts around Jim Hart’s African-influenced marimba groove to bring about an upbeat finale. If Neset’s references are often familiar ones and the ensemble writing at times leaves you gasping for air, the dialogue between contemporary improv and classical composition is still a very well-crafted, engaging one.