O’Connor Dazzles Crowd With Virtuosity in Solo Show

Master instrumentalist and Nashville session veteran Mark O’Connor’s list of awards and credentials is longer than his fiddle bow. A child prodigy turned adult virtuoso, he’s an innovator in both performance and composition, bridging the gap between country and classical.

During his two-hour solo performance at the Ash Grove on Sunday, the Seattle native’s virtuosity was dazzlingly displayed. Playing mostly fiddle, plus a half-hour guitar set and one mandolin number, O’Connor offered a taste from many musical platters. Often condensing longer works into medleys, he served up samples from his groundbreaking 1995 “Fiddle Concerto” for violin and orchestra, the traditional American styles on 1991’s “The New Nashville Cats” and his upcoming solo album.

O’Connor demonstrated his fluency in genres from Appalachian folk to classical to old-time fiddling. Although he was similarly adept on guitar and mandolin, his fiddling remained most compelling. In contrast to his towering skill, his stage demeanor was disarmingly low-key, as he almost sheepishly provided details about his work in instructive introductions.

The music was educational, too: The mournful, resolute “Song of the Liberty Bell” clearly showed fiddling’s Celtic roots, while the closing medley, “Midnight on the Water/Bonaparte’s Retreat,” honored O’Connor’s late mentor, pioneering fiddler Benny Thomasson.

The program’s occasional, puzzling sense of restraint was not due to lack of passion or emotion from O’Connor or his music. It was more about context: The rarefied recital air at times clashed with fiddling’s populist spirit.