Review: Deljavan’s playing bold but respectful

Alessandro Deljavan was surely the most easy-to-remember contestant in the 2013 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. His expressive face reflected the intensity of his involvement with the music he was playing. He charmed many people, annoyed a few, but no one could claim that his performances were boring.

Deljavan was back Saturday afternoon to participate in a concert for the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth at the Modern Art Museum. He was joined by violinist Gary Levinson (the organization’s artistic director), violist Michael Klotz and cellist Allan Steele to play music by Brahms and Dvorak.

One might expect that an artist with as exuberant a personality as Deljavan’s would be prone to exaggeration. Not so in this case. His playing Saturday was often bold, but respectful of the music and of his partners in the enterprise.

The concert opener was Brahms’ Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Major, with Levinson and Deljavan as the executants. Deljavan was strong without undue aggressiveness and Levinson held his own with boldly lyrical playing. A high point was the back-and-forth exchange in the lovely slow movement. (Deljavan has recorded the work with Italian violinist Daniela Cammarano for the OnClassical label.)

Brahms’ Viola Sonata in F minor teamed Deljavan and Klotz, a superb violist who has been impressive in this series before. The two gave an outstanding performance, with power aplenty from both instruments and exceptionally attractive tone from the viola.

There was a curious and annoying distraction: Someone in the audience — or that person’s cellphone, perhaps — began whistling during the Viola Sonata. Twice. I’ve heard plenty of distractions through the years, but this particular whistling noise was a first.

The grand finale was Dvorak’s Piano Quartet in E-flat. Cellist Steele joined the other three musicians for an exuberant performance of this masterpiece. Dvorak gave all four musicians plenty to do. It was especially interesting and heartening to hear the lovely sounds produced by Steele, who is the new principal cellist of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.

The audience became so caught up in the performance that they began applauding while the musicians were still playing the last few measures. It was quite a conclusion.