When Joshua Bell and Jeremy Denk came to Harris Concert Hall Thursday night the room was sold out because of Bell’s star power and fire power on violin. He actually performs in a way the unwashed would think of a violinist–with passion, panache, and a physicality that speaks to how hard it is to do what he does. There is much arching of the back and shaking of the head. Being young and handsome doesn’t hurt the impression one bit.

But Jeremy Denk on piano was every bit the musician that Bell has become. Both are alumni of the Aspen Festival and School, and the setting within the woody walls of the Harris, brought a warmth that was welcoming from both musicians. The concert in Aspen may not have been exactly like playing to a home-town crowd, but it still had elements of hail the conquering hero.

For reasons beyond my control, we had to leave at intermission, missing Bell’s star turn in Ysaye’s Sonata for Unaccompanied Violin in A Minor, and both Denk and Bell in Franck’s Violin Sonata in A Major. That’s the bad news. The good news is we heard the Janacek Violin Sonata and the Brahms Violin Sonata in De Minor, opus 108. Bell, needless to say, provided the lightning–he was brilliant, a monster on the violin, and to these ears absolutely flawless. Denk took his task to heart, providing an enveloping warmth that made possible Bell’s fancy flights.

Not a bad start for the Music Fest’s winter concert series and perhaps a reminder that for music at the highest level to come alive, all the elements must be present.