EDMOND—Philadelphia Church of God music director Ryan Malone and instructor Mark Jenkins performed a variety of solo and duo piano works for a crowd of about 320 on February 16 during a rare Sunday matinee at Armstrong Auditorium. The two-hour program included works by Mozart, Handel, Liszt, Kapustin, Brahms and Rachmaninoff.

Beforehand, Mr. Malone compared the afternoon’s program to “a seven-course meal” combining the clarity and energy of Mozart with the driving force of Rachmaninoff and the uniqueness of four hands with the familiarity of two hands.

The concert began with W. A. Mozart’s famous Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major. The piece included many trills and exciting crescendos followed by the main, triumphant theme. Mr. Malone expressed the music using his whole body, while Jenkins epitomized precision and technical skill.

Following the 25-minute opening piece, Jenkins closed the first half by showcasing a spectrum of pianistic possibilities with a trio of emotional yet smooth popular solo works by G. F. Handel, Franz Liszt and Nicolai Kapustin. “I picked some pieces that I had wanted to play for a long time but never have,” Jenkins said.

Mr. Malone opened the second half by delving into three lofty, contemplative Johannes Brahms pieces that gave the audience a chance to relax before a rhythmic, fast-paced Brahms rhapsody. Between pieces, he spoke a little to the audience, mentioning that a highlight of his musical career was his 2009 trip with Jenkins to Hamburg, Germany, to select one of the two “magnificent” 9-foot concert grand Steinways that co-starred in the performance.

Before the finale, as the audience was still buzzing in response to Mr. Malone’s rhapsody rendition, Jenkins chatted a little bit about his and Mr. Malone’s history together: The two were born three weeks apart and grew up together in St. Louis. He joked about how Mr. Malone has always gotten the better part when they perform together: as 3-year-olds, Jenkins was a Confederate soldier to Mr. Malone’s Union soldier in “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” Several years later, Jenkins hummed a melancholy tune while Mr. Malone sang the upbeat lyrics of “Don’t Worry Be Happy.”

The duo ended the program with the fireworks of Rachmaninoff’s Suite No. 2 for Two Pianos. However, the audience gave them a lengthy standing ovation, so they sat back down to play a catchy, uplifting encore called “I Got Rhythm.” Then, their young daughters, Skye Malone and Megan Jenkins, rushed to the stage and handed them flowers.

Audience expectations may have been lower since the two were a local act, but the duo appeared to exceed those expectations judging by some of the audience members’ responses, one of the concertgoers calling the experience “a pleasant surprise.”

“Boy, those guys can play!” another said as he left the theater.

“Our concert series usually has one local offering,” Mr. Malone said, referencing internationally acclaimed Russian native and Edmond-based pianist Valery Kuleshov and Guthrie fiddle player Byron Berline, who performed in Armstrong Auditorium in 2012 and 2013, respectively. “So why not us?”

The two said they derive inspiration from several pianists, including Arthur Rubinstein and Vladimir Horowitz, both megastar pianists who performed in Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, California. “I’ve always found excitement and depth in Rubinstein,” Mr. Malone said. Jenkins said he is also a huge fan of Maurizio Pollini.

Among other achievements, Mr. Malone was one of seven national finalists in the 1997-1998 collegiate piano competition for the Music Teachers National Association. Jenkins won first place in the 1998 University of Oklahoma concerto competition and the 1999 MTNA collegiate state competition. The two musicians have also collaborated to compose and record songs for nine PCG albums.

The tandem had never performed together in the Armstrong International Cultural Foundation’s concert series or put on a two-piano concert, but they did play as a duo on one piano during a show almost seven years ago.

The 2013-2014 concert series continues on February 27, when the Haifa Symphony Orchestra of Israel visits Armstrong Auditorium as part of the group’s first U.S. tour in its 64-year history.