DALLAS - Finding the spirit of Franz Liszt -- the warmth and the gigantic, generous soul -- is a task that often evades even mature artists.

But at 17, Houston-born, Fort Worth-based pianist Adam Golka has already found the secrets to conveying the magic in that 19th-century genius' music. He displayed his amazing insight Saturday night as piano soloist for Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat in the opening concert of the Dallas Symphony's summer series at Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center.

Golka, who was featured artist with the Fort Worth Symphony just one week earlier at Concerts in the Garden (thus making himself probably the only 17-year-old in history to appear as the main soloist with both of those orchestras in a one-week span), had the Dallas appearance as part of his prize as first-place winner of the 2003 Lynn Harrell Competition, an event for teen-age musicians.

But his performance with the orchestra and conductor Lawrence Loh needed no qualification or apology for his age.

Golka's obvious ease and command of the keyboard are the basis of his power in Liszt's music; to this, he adds a wonderful sense of drama, momentum and pacing to keep the listener involved. Beyond those assets, he possesses a rare range of color, moving readily from whispers to thunderbolts.

Conductor Loh was not always exactly with Golka; the accompaniment was a bit shy of the same level of playing that Golka offered.

Still, thanks to Golka, it was a debut worth remembering. If Golka -- who currently studies with 1985 Cliburn gold medalist Jose Feghali at Texas Christian University -- stays on track, he will doubtless be a regular with symphony orchestras and on recital stages around the world within a few years.

Loh and the orchestra opened the concert, which was performed without intermission, with Brahms' Hungarian Dance No. 6, rich with contrasting tempos and moods crammed into about six minutes.

After Golka's performance of the Liszt Concerto, Loh and the orchestra turned to another musical monument in E-flat, Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 (Eroica). Here, Loh had the orchestra and the music completely in control, producing a lush, beautiful tone that had been missing earlier in the evening.

At the same time he explored the dozens of surprises and miracles in the score. And like Golka's Liszt, Loh's Beethoven proved that a masterpiece can always contain new revelations.