By JEFFREY KACZMARCZYK

[Midori's] concert Tuesday evening with pianist Robert McDonald was a virtuosic performance, not of flash and dash, but of substance . Midori's powerful bowing and accurate intonation with minimal vibrato were intoxicating. Her tone was beautiful, as her encore, Russian composer Alexander Glazunov's "Meditation," bore out. She spun long notes in "Meditation" as if she were breathing into her Guarnerius del Gesu violin. But the lingering impression was more of truth than beauty as Midori probed melodic lines and patiently, meticulously, developed them to respective climaxes. Violin and piano were perfectly aligned and collaborative partners.

... Midori and McDonald rendered [John Cage's Six Melodies] like a Japanese watercolor with a minimum number of brush strokes. The showpiece was Romanian composer George Enescu's Sonata for Violin and Piano, Op. 25. ... Thunder came from the piano, lightning from the violin. ... Midori split more than a few hairs on her bow, brandishing it like a lance, pounding it as if it were a mace, while producing extraordinary, seemingly effortless effects that conjured an enthusiastic standing ovation from the audience.