At Tanglewood, a BSO tradition in flux

LENOX -- Tweaking performance traditions can be a good thing, as even the most worthy rituals, when left untouched, can calcify into stale routine. In recent years, the BSO has typically performed Beethoven's Ninth Symphony to close the classical season at Tanglewood, but last summer, music director James Levine switched things up by opening the summer with the Ninth instead.

This year, Levine and the BSO took a pass from the event altogether in anticipation of the orchestra's upcoming European tour. That left the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra and guest conductor Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos to apostrophize heavenly joy. They did so on Sunday afternoon, performing the Ninth with the Tanglewood Festival Chorus.

Still, the absence of the BSO detracted a bit from the luster of the event, and while Frühbeck is a dependable and energetic conductor, a valued utility player, his performances seldom inspire through their interpretive subtlety or depth of imagination. Such was the case on Sunday with the TMC Orchestra, a spirited ad-hoc assembly of fine young musicians, but also an ensemble that has never performed this work as a group. The first movement was buoyed by some notable woodwind contributions, but was marred by imprecise balances that tended to create an impression of loudness without detail. The second movement was cleanly articulated but with a heavy-footed quality to its phrasing. The third movement coalesced more smoothly and boasted some shapely playing from the strings.

But the performance did not truly take flight until the Finale, when the basses and cellos sounded their stormy introduction with a broad, full-throated tone. Raymond Aceto sang with deep resonance and rhetorical force as the bass soloist; tenor Marcus Haddock had a smaller but pleasing voice. Soprano Melanie Diener and mezzo Mary Phillips ably rounded out the quartet of vocal soloists.

Best of all was the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, which sang with great power and sweep. Those qualities occasionally came at the expense of clarity, yet one was still immensely grateful for the passion and commitment of these singers. They were the heart -- and the continuity -- of this performance, and their depth of experience with this score was palpable. The large audience cheered lustily.

Recent tradition notwithstanding, one might wonder whether it's perhaps time for a summer away from Beethoven's Ninth. Tanglewood planners appear to be heading in that direction anyway, and even a short sabbatical for such a work can do wonders.

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