REVIEW

Nothing like a little change of scenery for the Colorado Symphony's music director. "This is what I do on my night off," Jeffrey Kahane quipped to his audience Thursday night.

This was a special piano recital, benefitting the CSO, offered in the intimacy of Gates Concert Hall at the University of Denver.

A post-performance reception was held on the stage for those who contributed much-needed cash to the CSO coffers. And adding to the festive occasion was the presence on the program of two composers named Kahane.

The first up was 27-year-old Gabriel Kahane, the talented son of Jeffrey.

The younger Kahane's Django, a short-but-treacherous set of variations commissioned by his father, received its first performance. It proved to be a delicious mixture of styles, bubbling with youthful energy.

These five "Tiny Variations on a Big Dog" (Django is the family pet) traveled from airy arpeggios to a tastey bit of stride piano at the end. Terrific stuff, and brilliantly played by the soloist.

Prior to the Django premiere, Kahane played six equally enticing miniatures by the American composer Kenneth Frazelle. As its name suggests, Wildflowers consisted of pieces named for such flora as blue lobelia and fire pink. The pianist explained that there are 12 in all and that they're part of a sonata-fantasy.

Modernism was presented in muted colors, briefly straying into jazzy syncopation and startling listeners with a short snippet from Chopin's Berceuse.

The program proper began and ended with more virtuosic miniatures. Three of Mendelssohn's Songs Without Words (including the familiar Spinning Song) were delivered with a soft touch and a warm heart.

Rachmaninoff closed the recital with a five-part set consisting of Preludes and Etudes-tableaux.

Here, Kahane showcased his impressive technique and powerful chops in these fiendishly difficult works.

This was not exclusively a night of musical morsels. The first half ended with the expansive wonders of Schubert's late A-major Sonata. Kahane was mostly up to its enormous demands, which required unrelenting intensity, pacing and perseverance. He did tend to push tempos in the quicker movements, robbing the music of its simple charms. Still, this was first-rate playing.

After dazzling his listeners with Rachmaninoff, Kahane returned to offer his own lovely, understated setting of America the Beautiful. Like son, like father.

Marc Shulgold is the music and dance writer. Shulgoldm@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5296