Nico Muhly and Pekka Kuusisto at Le Poisson Rouge Nico Muhly and Pekka Kuusisto, from left, performed works by Mr. Muhly, among several other composers, at Le Poisson Rouge on Friday. It is increasingly common for adventurous musicians like Chris Thile to take a mix-and-match approach to programming. Instead of performing a Bach partita or complete sonata in reverential entirety, he might juxtapose movements with eclectic repertory to highlight unlikely connections. The Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto, who performs jazz, folk music and electronic music as well as standard classical fare, often takes a similar tack. But there was certainly nothing standard about his interpretation of Bach's Partita for Solo Violin No. 2 in D minor on Friday evening at Le Poisson Rouge, played for an enthusiastic capacity crowd. Mr. Kuusisto's passionate rendition of the work's Chaconne proved arresting; his idiosyncratic style stopped short of indulgent with unpredictable twists of tempo, phrasing and dynamics. During his no-holds-barred playing, there were many broken bow hairs, which danced over his instrument like gossamer insect legs. The concert also featured the composer and pianist Nico Muhly, who performed some of his own works for duo with Mr. Kuusisto. Those scores, as well as Arvo Pärt's "Fratres" and Philip Glass's "The Orchard," were interspersed with movements from the Partita. Thus the Partita's Allemande segued without pause into "Fratres," a beautiful, meditative work composed in 1977 for strings and winds and since rearranged for various figurations, including piano and violin. After a striking rendition of the Courante from the Partita, the duo offered the intense, hypnotic "The Orchard" by Mr. Glass, an important mentor to Mr. Muhly. Mr. Muhly composed "Drones and Violin" for Mr. Kuusisto; each instrument establishes a drone, contrasted with fast, fluttering motifs. The pair also performed a slow, enigmatic movement from Mr. Muhly's "Drones and Piano," in which the violin part unfolded with quivering brush strokes. Mr. Kuusisto, whose engaging commentary and jokes enlivened the concert, announced before performing the Chaconne: "When that's finished - no pun intended - " he would offer some traditional Finnish tunes. He gave a brief description of the songs before beginning to sing in a lilting voice in his native language, tapping his foot and strumming his violin like a guitar.