The audience at Friday night's Honolulu Symphony Master Works concert was treated to a couple of surprises. Unlike last week's earthquake that canceled the Oct. 15 performance, these surprises were pleasant ones.

The scheduled conductor was replaced by Andreas Delfs, who is the music director of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and the planned concluding work on the program was replaced by the Brahms Symphony No. 1. Maestro Delfs is an established star among conductors, known as an innovator and champion of contemporary music. His command of the evening's selections indicates he also is an unparalleled interpreter of more traditional concert repertoire.

The concert opened with Benjamin Britten's Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. Originally conceived in 1946 with narration to introduce young people to the instruments of the orchestra, it uses the form of theme and variation to give each family of instruments a chance to take center stage. It is a testament to the composer's inventive craftsmanship that the work also is a satisfying concert piece that works well without narration.

Because the work highlights the sonority and capabilities of the various orchestral instruments, it provides an opportunity to display the talents of a number of the outstanding players in the Honolulu Symphony. The woodwinds were particularly brilliant executing rapid passages with sprite-like agility. The concluding fugue and restatement of the theme contained layers of rhythmic activity that Delfs kept well organized and knitted together to produce a massive wall of sound like a thunderous organ.

The Grieg Concerto for Piano in A Minor was brilliantly executed by one of Hawai'i's favorite concert pianists, Jon Nakamatsu, the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition gold medalist. Nakamatsu commanded all elements of the concerto, from the dramatic opening theme, to the pathos and melancholy of the second movement, to the frolicsome folk dances of the final movement.

Grieg was a nationalist composer seeking to share the music of his native Norway with the world. He also had a lyrical gift, writing many songs that were often performed by his wife. Soloist and conductor were sensitive to this as they drew forth every bit of Nordic emotion the composer intended.

Nakamatsu treated the audience to a welcomed encore of the piano transcription of Robert Schumann's passionate and ravishing love song "Widmung (Dedication)" by Franz Liszt.

The evening's concluding work took more than 20 years to compose. Brahms longed to compose symphonies but was haunted by the towering legacy of Beethoven, the acknowledged master of the symphony. His first symphony finally appeared in 1876, and while reviews were largely positive, Brahms himself commented that it was "long and not especially amiable." But Brahms is a composer who deals with profound and consequential ideas.

Maestro Delfs conveyed the intellectual intensity of Brahms at every turn.

The sweeping slow introduction glides ominously over the somber heartbeat reiterated by timpanist Stuart Chafetz. The listener is immediately aware that this is a significant work and represents one of the great symphonies of all time.

Although profound, the symphony is never dull or distant; it touches both the intellect and the heart.

The lyricism of the second movement is effectively captured by principal clarinetist Scott Anderson, and a lovely duet between concertmaster Ignaz Jang and principal horn Wade Butin kept listeners enchanted. The strings executed the memorable chorale-like closing theme of the final movement with conviction. The entire performance exuded clarity, confidence and control.