What do you do when you've been a concert pianist for 50 years? Why, give a concert, of course! The Ama Deus Ensemble was more than happy to host Romanian pianist and Ama Deus regular Dan Grigore for an Anniversary Gala in Perelman Hall.

The first piece on the program, Beethoven's Egmont Overture, incidental music for a play by Goethe, was plagued by some ensemble problems. Conductor Valentin Radu's animated style was a delight to behold, but often kept the orchestra on its toes. That aside, I found myself doing a double-take now and then because I kept on hearing strains of his 5th Symphony, also written around the same time. Grigrore's performance in the first movement was so impressive that it caused the audience to break standard applause protocol - clapping between movements! Grieg's Piano Concerto in A Minor was simply lovely. The orchestra's graceful and lyric rubato captured Grieg's melodic sense perfectly. While Grigore almost seemed to get carried away in the more bombastic sections, his gossamer textures were executed with a combination of fierce precision and tender delicacy.

The second half of the program was devoted to some of Beethoven's lesser-known choral works, culminating in his Fantasy for Chorus and Orchestra. The choir's wonderfully rich timbre was perfectly suited for Beethoven and provided for a triumphant close to the program. I was again impressed by Grigore's musicality; his execution of cadenzas made it seem as if he had performed the piece 100 times but was still delighted to deliver it a 101st.

The highlight of the evening, however, was not even listed on the program. The audience serenaded Grigore with a rousing "Happy 50th Anniversary" to the tune of "Happy Birthday" and threw bouquets of flowers at him. Deeply touched, Grigore proceeded to rattle off some of the most impressive feats in the solo piano repertoire as an encore, including Rachmaninoff's transcription of Rimsky-Korsakov's "Flight of the Bumblebee," and many more. His unfailing energy made me doubt his 50 years on the stage, but his sheer talent and deep understanding of the music did not.

Photo credit: Paola Nogueras