Conrad Tao. Remember that name.

An awestruck audience at Monday night’s Festival del Sole concert in Yountville’s Lincoln Theater certainly will.

Substituting for ailing Italian pianist Fabio Bidini, Tao — native of Urbana, Ill., who recently celebrated his 13th birthday — delivered a mouth-dropping performance of Serge Prokofiev’s “Piano Concerto No. 3 in C” that festivalgoers will be talking about for years to come.

Coupled with the Russian National Orchestra’s glorious performances of the Prokofiev and Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition” — thanks to the musical sculpting talents of conductor Carlo Ponti Jr. — Monday’s concert might best be described as a magical experience.

It was the slight, young pianist who got our juices flowing Monday night. He’d barely played a few pages of the score when smiles began appearing on the faces of audience members. By the time Tao delivered the first movement’s brilliant allegro, we knew we were witnessing a very special collaboration.

A handout as we entered Lincoln Theater told us that Tao had started formal piano lessons at three-and-a-half years and that he was an accomplished composer before he reached his teens. Winner of last year’s Prokofiev Concerto Competition, Tao has been signed to one of the big talent agencies in New York, IMG, a firm owned by Barrett Wissman, festival co-founder. (That explains how a replacement for the ailing guest artist from Italy was quickly found.)

 But nothing could prepare us for the talent that leapt from the stage. His command of one of the classical repertoire’s most difficult works was simply amazing. This is one of the Russian composer’s most popular and lyrical works, one that has given men and women twice his age, shall we say, pause.

Despite his small frame, Tao brought a full-bodied tone to a work that’s often played with leaner style. On top of that, the young man’s articulation at breakneck speeds proved nothing short of amazing. Yet, the lyrical aspects of this incredible work came off as well as the anticipated virtuosic ones.

Credit must be given to maestro Ponti for the Russian National Orchestra’s Technicolor sound on the Russian works. The orchestral accompaniment on the concerto was as brilliant as the efforts of the soloist. This was a romantic interpretation, devoid of the bombast that often winds up in live performances of the Prokofiev third. The reading was emotionally charged, to be sure, but Ponti held the reins, integrating all the parts. Tao and Ponti teamed up to give the work a lighter, sentimental touch, one that underscored the virtuosic talents of the soloist.

Conductor, orchestra and guest artist provided both drama and warmth throughout the performance, from the ethereal opening phrases to the glissandos of the finale. This was a fabulously played, electrifying account by all hands of a welcome staple of the piano repertoire. And one we’ll treasure as long as memory serves us.

As if he needed to placate newfound wine country fans who were standing and cheering “bravo, bravo,” Tao sat down at the piano and, for an encore, knocked off Lizst’s “Hungarian Rhapsody No. 11” with the flair and panache of a veteran concert artist. Amazing, simply amazing.

Ponti and the Russian National Orchestra offered an electrically charged reading of Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition” as well.

The Ravel orchestration was rife with vivid strokes of orchestral color, from the cheeping of the unhatched chicks to the bravura swirl of the “Limoges Market” in artist Victor Hartmann’s paintings, from the virtuosity and attack of “Baba Yaga” to the dignified loftiness of that final great gateway of Kiev. This was a performance that allowed the audience to appreciate the genius of Ravel as orchestrator.

Ponti let the work unfold naturally, eschewing virtuosity for the music’s pictorialism and atmosphere. There was some very dramatic brass playing, marvelous percussion and the strings proved absolutely brilliant.

Perhaps it’s just as well that composer-in-residence John Corigliano was not able to attend the festival this week. His “Suite from The Red Violin” received an adequate reading at best.

But honestly, who cares? It’s wunderkind Conrad Tao who’s got tongues wagging. Remember that name.