By JAY KIRSCHENMANN

The star of a monumental concert for Sioux Falls Saturday night was the petite violin virtuoso, Midori. Her slight frame belies the magnitude of her music. Midori, 36, doesn't just play, she feels the pieces she performs.

Saturday night it was a piece by Tchaikovsky that the soloist made us feel, letting us experience the emotion of the music. ... Midori began the Concerto ... with eyes closed, head slightly bowed. As momentum of the piece increased, at times she held her violin perpendicular, right side to the floor, left side toward the ceiling, sound holes toward the audience. ...

As she taught musicians during the week leading to this concert, Midori's fluid fingers correspond with subtle ritards and dynamic shifts. She serves us a musical, emotional narrative paying microscopically close attention to the way she performs. With no amplification, no microphones, three levels of the [house nearly] filled with even the softest, delicately played notes, masterfully performed. ...

Delta David Gier led the orchestra with a joy in his conducting, his body language more pronounced than usual. He says the musicians have told him they will never play the same again since their time with the world-famous violinist. ...

For those who don't travel to other venues often, this is the time to hear a soloist who exhibits more than just phenomenal technique, more than a glimpse of a virtuoso at the top of her career. It's a chance to feel the emotion of the music, and experience what a master musician can do to our souls.