Bronfman dazzles with difficult program

He may be a man of few words onstage — his only comment came during an encore — but he expressed rampant emotion from the moment his fingers touched the keys Tuesday during his performance at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Though the concert, part of the Charles Vanda Master series, was sparsely attended — fewer than 400 people were in the audience — Bronfman did not compromise his commitment to his art. In his program of four works and two encores, he showed charm, passion, frolic and frenzy worthy of an evening before a sold-out Carnegie Hall.

All the compositions on the regular program are considered “fantasies” of classical music, because their construction is less like other music in this genre and offers more of the composer’s personal expression and techniques.

The 49-year-old pianist opened with Beethoven’s “Sonata for Piano No. 13 in E-flat Major, Op. 27, No. 1.” Changes in tempo and timbre came perfectly if unexpectedly, encompassing performer and audience as one as Bronfman worked through the movements. The performance was methodical but never clinical. It was obvious that he enjoyed the piece and wanted to envelop the audience in his reverie.

Bronfman was involved from the first note of Schumann’s “Fantasie in C Major, Op. 17.” The abrupt, almost brusque tones of the first movement melded easily into the lilting second section before a caressing, languorous finale. Bronfman’s fingers lingered on the keys long after the tones subsided, forcing the audience to stay with him for silent seconds before his almost incidental motions to conclude the piece brought tremendous applause.

After intermission, the pianist offered Ravel’s “Gaspard de la nuit, Three Poems for Piano.” Bronfman worked through the difficult piece without issue, with his effective and deft touch coaxing appropriate emotion in each sequence.

The evening’s scheduled performance ended with Balakirev’s “Islamey: An Oriental Fantasy.” The selection is widely acknowledged to be one of the most difficult compositions for a pianist, only slightly easier than the Ravel. To include both on one program is an exercise in self-discipline and skill. Bronfman seemed to relish the challenge, with amazing, quick, hand-over-hand movements; fast-paced transitions from the upper to the lower registers; and flying fingers leading to a breathless conclusion. At last, Bronfman showed a bit of emotion away from the piano keys, turning quickly to acknowledge the audience at the end.

He returned with two encores. The first was a vibrant Scarletti’s “Sonata”; the next, Chopin’s “Etude Opus No. 10, No. 12 in C minor.” The latter piece calls for impressively fast and complex play for its vibrant, dynamic sound, and Bronfman got it exactly right.

The pianist was adamant as to why he included the last piece, speaking to the audience for the first time during the concert. “No program is ever complete without Chopin,” he said. “He was the greatest.”