The Boston Symphony Orchestra showed off expert chops in a triumphant night of heroic proportions, featuring Mozart’s Jupiter Symphony and Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben. This pair of audience favorites invited comparisons and considerations that brought out the strengths of each piece. The Jupiter Symphony represents the summit of Mozart’s symphonic path; Ein Heldenleben, Strauss’s uberdrama, reckons with his own brand of heroism. Both composers stretched the forms — Classical symphony or ultra-Romantic tone poem — to their limits. Mozart stuffed his symphony full of contrapuntal invention, and Heldenleben’s 45 minutes and massive orchestra made it the longest, largest tone poem yet. Yet each piece’s individual qualities stood out in juxtaposition with each other: the clarity and grace of Mozart’s symphony and Strauss’s effusively emotional style. The BSO realized both personalities masterfully.

Thunderous chords opened the Jupiter, trading off with gentle sighs. The BSO dashed off in a surprisingly fast tempo, which enhanced the elegant character without seeming rushed. Over time, it either slowed off ― or my ears just became accustomed. In the first movement, sweet strains contrasted heavily with turbulent exclamations. The Andante cantabile provided another beginning of contrasts: an inviting hand, then a forte punctuation, firm yet not harsh. Rounded attacks and smooth melodies created a cozy, blooming warmth, as gentle reassurances in this singing movement suffused the colors of anxiety.

The easygoing minuet and trio carried on the genial atmosphere. Smiles abounded amongst rivers of legato and fortes more like bursts of good cheer than hammer strikes. Then, again, the orchestra set off at breakneck pace in the Molto allegro finale. The BSO’s clear, bright playing allowed this contrapuntal tour de force to shine, with eighth notes right in lockstep in all sections. Sforzandos and accents resonated with weight without being inappropriately heavy. The legendary quintuple fugue climax, with five different motives all dancing about, worked its wonders before the ensemble blasted off to a fanfaring finish.

Throughout the Mozart, Andris Nelsons directed with deep craft and gentle care. He found a great deal of opportunity for expressive phrasing, shaped by subtle, nuanced gestures in both hands. A couple tasteful bends in time, such as grand pauses stretched by just a moment, or some little slows into large arrivals, added fun to the mix. Crisp brass and timpani provided pomp and flair, woodwind colors rang out clearly and neatly, and the strings consistently impressed in speedy runs and lilting tunes. Through all this, Mozart’s classic operatic character became evident in quick character changes and large dynamic ranges. Always brimming with joie de vivre, the Jupiter Symphony orbited with great joy.

Following the intermission, the musicians embarked on Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben. The cellos, basses, and horns declaimed the famous opening theme to depict The Hero, bombastic and courageous in its wide range. Around these bold assertions, a vast, expansive landscape arose from the orchestra, marked by bright brass calls. These passionate leaps and long-reaching melodies were suddenly interrupted by a coterie of twittering, cackling winds, picking and pecking at the hero. Along with ominous low brass fifths and triads, these represented The Hero’s Adversaries. Here the voice of the hero lost its confidence, falling to uncertain sorrows. The critics’ voices and the hero’s laments combined and grew and grew, raging, until…

…the solo violin spun onto the scene, coquettish, teasing. Concertmaster Nathan Cole embodied The Hero’s Companion with wonderfully endearing flair, playfully disarming and charming. This lover skipped about with amorous sugar and virtuosic spice, trading barbs with aggressive brass and low strings, craving and chasing. These exchanges between the hero’s desire and the single violin continued, reaching intense heights, until the full orchestral love scene exploded in lush, sensuous scoring. This tenderly unfurling affection drifted off into quiet night.

But the adversarial windbags returned, whispering in the wind, and an offstage trumpet fanfare called us back to action, with The Hero at Battle. Military percussion and huge brass calls heralded this war scene. A whirling mosaic of chaotic voices and melodies filled the hall, in typical Straussian fashion, overwhelming our brains and ears with all sorts of musical events and surprises. This sonic combat ended in an E-flat triumph, bringing back the hero’s theme in all strings in a satisfying, welcome return. Here, The Hero’s Works of Peace displayed themselves pridefully. Individual winds’ voices called out within a series of quotes of Strauss’s earlier tone poems. The E-flat clarinet & bass clarinet quote of Till Eulenspiegel especially poked out, thumbing its nose. Seas of sound in waves of memory and accomplishment ebbed and flowed, but suddenly another clash ensued, frenetic and unpredictable.

But this time, instead of gallant vanquishment, the hero retreated to love and domesticity. As Strauss suggested, here was The Hero’s Retirement from this World and Completion. English horn peals resounded above the strings; pastoral and matter-of-fact, they echoed simpler days. Here the familiar E-flat major was less a reminder of extroverted heroics than a home of intimate, familial peace. A menacing disturbance burst out, but the solo violin dispelled this quickly with comforting, confiding gestures. The orchestra sank into a mollifying, healing peace, shades of uncertainty falling away to reconciliation. A solemn chorale of winds and brass painted a golden sunset in harmony.

All parts of the orchestra gleamed throughout the giant tone poem. In particular, the brass tackled Strauss’s fanfares, chorales, and stunning high notes bravely and successfully. Cole’s violin solos were a delight to watch, combining technical expertise with theatrical panache; around the strings executed their parts adroitly through wild frenzies and tranquil respites. The winds characterized brilliantly in solos and well-intoned group efforts, and percussion and harps did great work setting big dramatic moods. Together with his colleagues, Nelsons illuminated the mountains and valleys of Strauss’s score with passion and mastery.

And yet through all the chaos and clashes, somehow the different lines and voices came through to us with distinct identity and sharp focus — just as the many contrapuntal lines in Mozart’s symphony. Indeed, Strauss considered Mozart “the most sublime of all composers.” It is a fortune, then, to hear both artists considered in the same evening, presented in such commitment to dramatic character plus notewise accuracy and clarity. And above all, the BSO performed for us with genuine heart, a true honor to see and appreciate. The musicians of the BSO were our heroes of last night.

Julian Gau is a Boston-based freelancer and writer with a master’s degree in orchestral conducting from the Boston Conservatory. He serves as founder and conductor of the Horizon Ensemble, and resident conductor of the Chinese Music Ensemble of New York. He holds degrees in music and mathematics from Brown University.