Violinist Daniel Stepner (MUS), a member of the Lydian String Quartet, teamed up with pianist Ben Stepner and bassist Bob Nieske for an evening of music in Slosberg Hall that included Bach, Debussy and a few jazz standards, as well as several original pieces composed by the performers. The mix of intermittently intense classical music and mostly laid-back jazz interpretations made for a refreshing show, with a combination of genres that gave the audience a charming taste of each style. Daniel Stepner, who teaches at both Brandeis and Harvard, has performed and recorded widely throughout his career. In addition to his 20 recordings with the Lydian String Quartet, Stepner has participated in numerous classical recordings of musical giants like Mozart, Handel and Bach.

Ben Stepner is a regular at the Milton Academy's jazz program. He has self-produced a number of original CDs and has played with many of Boston's professional jazz musicians.

Bob Nieske is an accomplished bassist who has played with such music notables as Alan Dawson and Charlie Byrd, as well as a host of other artists. He is currently the jazz artist-in-residence at Brandeis.

The evening started off with a solo performance by Daniel Stepner. The first piece, "Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue," written by Johann Sebastian Bach and arranged for violin by Stepner, provided the violinist with an opportunity to showcase virtuoso skills as he sped up and down the instrument in flowing, chromatic phrases. The piece slowed down and became more dissonant in its harmonies as it neared the end, and Stepner complemented the change with a staccato style of phrasing that wrapped up an overall impressive showing.

Next was Claude Debussy's "Sonata for Violin and Piano," performed by the two Stepners. The piece had a sweeping, dreamy quality to it, and even a slight Middle Eastern touch at times. The music was at its most exciting when the performers dynamically played off one another in short, synchronized bursts of music, but also held up nicely in the longer melodious sections.

After the intermission, the evening moved into its jazzy repertoire. Ben Stepner, in a piano solo, performed Victor Young's "Stella by Starlight," a dark, flowing piece with a classical feel but distinct hints of jazz.

They three then, for the first time that evening, played together, showing their talents through a laid-back, well-synchronized version of the jazz classic "Donna Lee" by alto saxophone legend Charlie Parker. The gentle sounds of Daniel Stepner's violin gave the song a more free-form jazzy feel.

The song that followed was arguably the highlight of the evening. An original by Daniel Stepner, "The had-Brahms-written-this-rag Rag" resulted from Stepner's what-if musings of a ragtime version of Johannes Brahms' work from nineteenth century Germany. The piece's folksy tune was performed playfully and with lighthearted energy by the two Stepners.

Though the music was entertaining overall and all three musicians showed mastery with instruments, the trio was least effective musically when they played together, for the simple reason that the sound of a gentle violin leading their melodies was simply not sufficiently forceful. But all things considered, the trio performed impressively, both as an ensemble and individually.