MUSIC REVIEWS : Young Pianist Performs With S.C. Symphony : 18-year-old Anders Martinson captures spotlight in Irvine concert. Orchestra overcomes musical challenges to contribute to an impressive evening.

Saturday was a challenging evening for the South Coast Symphony at the Irvine Barclay Theatre--which, of course, doesn’t necessarily translate into a satisfying listening experience.

Music director John Larry Granger had chosen a long and arduous program, the centerpiece of which, Debussy’s “La Mer,” can test the mettle of the world’s greatest orchestras.

By and large, it was an evening of challenges met. Debussy’s masterpiece is a subtle beast, however, a work of virtuoso instrumental display and vivid colors--yet it paints elusive sensations, engrosses with ineffable emotions.

The results were impressive if, at bottom, not entirely convincing. Granger offered no-nonsense clarity from the podium, maintaining poised balances, clear instrumental detail and sturdy rhythm.

The orchestra responded with reliable playing at all times, including many fine solo contributions, but occasionally sounded stretched.

One missed the complete assurance and steely bite required by the upper range string parts. One missed the edge, the gush, in those sudden orchestral crescendos. One missed the perfume of the score. An admirable and respectable reading then, boding well for this orchestra’s progress, but which didn’t quite capture the essential poetry of the piece.

The concert opened with a novelty, the Symphony No. 1 by Joseph Boulogne Saint-Georges, the West Indian chevalier, fencer, violinist, military and orchestral leader (1739-99). The work turned out to be an extremely well-behaved piece of classical drawing-room music, proving that interesting bios don’t make great composers. The South Coast violins had trouble bringing the requisite elegance to the high-ranging melodic lines, in an otherwise tidy reading.

It remained then for pianist Anders Martinson, 18, winner of the second South Coast Young Artist Competition, to steal the show, and that he did. Martinson chose the very overworked Second Piano Concerto by Rachmaninoff as his vehicle, which to his credit didn’t sound that way at all.

With a technique strong and sure, Martinson gave casual and easy utterance to even the most involved passage work. The big, sweeping tunes reached their peaks naturally--he never pressed for emotion--and along the way he found room for sensitive, pointed shading.

He showed himself an unselfish and intelligent performer as well, readily taking on an accompanimental role when called for, crisply emphasizing melody in scampering virtuoso formulations. In short, a young pianist with fingers and a personality.

Granger and orchestra, despite occasionally sluggish response, supplied an aptly lavish framework.

Three dances from Falla’s “El Sombrero de Tres Picos” seemed anti-climactic in conclusion, in a performance capturing much of its sparkle and flash and power, but sometimes lacking in dash and swagger.