Levine, BSO give Tchaikovsky fresh life at Tanglewood opener

But the sky cleared just in time for the concert, and inside the Koussevitzky Music Shed, James Levine and the orchestra seemed intent on playing Tchaikovsky with the kind of drama, force, and conviction that makes you forget about everything else. And that they did, beginning with a smoldering performance of the composer’s Sixth Symphony.

One thing about Levine is that he does not associate summer festival music-making with any diminution of seriousness or intensity. You might be nibbling on camembert and gazing up at the stars but he is treating the occasion like a Thursday night in Symphony Hall.

In this case, he conducted the Sixth with the same stirring conviction that he brought to the work last season in Boston - once again it felt like he was daring you to hear this warhorse afresh - but if anything his interpretations seemed to have gelled more, and moments that once felt exaggerated or overstated seem more persuasively integrated into a larger whole.

The opening of the first movement was spellbinding, as the basses played so quietly the sound seemed to drift off the stage like a mist, and Richard Svoboda’s free-floating bassoon solo was full of mystery.

There was some unsettled and uneven brass playing, but the orchestra as a whole sounded robust and well-rested. Throughout the work, Levine drew a vast range of expression, but the third movement was particularly potent as he harnessed the power of the dotted rhythm in the main theme to drive the long crescendos, and the violins dug deeply into the strings.

After intermission, Yefim Bronfman’s account of Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto electrified the crowd with its pinpoint precision and thundering runs. There were moments when the strings needed more definition to match Bronfman’s steely tone, but overall, Levine and the orchestra were fully invested and impassioned partners.

Audience members in the rear portion of the Shed last night saw much more than usual of what was happening on stage, thanks to three new high-definition screens - each 9 by 16 feet.

It’s hard to know just how much we listen with our eyes, but last night’s ovation was the sound of a happy crowd.

Jeremy Eichler can be reached at jeichler@globe.com.