Here's my 2 picks for the "similar to Bartok" question. Vit Micka (I
actually found him on mp3.com) and Ginastera. I know very little
about these 2, other than I heard their compositions and said, "I like
this. It reminds me a lot of Bartok." A little further out from
that, but still really cool, is Alfred Schnittke. Tell your friend to
try these out.
Meat