By Scott McLennan

Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, and their 12-piece ensemble moved effortlessly from blues and soul to free jazz, psychedelia, and a deeply felt “Ohio.”

Susan Tedeschi & Derek Trucks at Tanglewood. Photo: Hilary Scott

The Tedeschi Trucks Band made a memorable debut at Tanglewood on Wednesday, crafting a brilliant concert that included a few nods to the location, masterfully surveyed a song catalog now 16 years in the making, and paid homage to music that has informed and inspired these musicians throughout their careers.

Perhaps standing on a stage typically occupied by renowned classical music conductors challenged Derek Trucks to take his maestro role to a new level. Under Trucks’ subtle direction, songs flowed as energy was built up over the two and a half hour show. There were beguiling contrasts and transitions, and every member of the 12-piece band (plus a couple of guests) had a turn in the spotlight.

Lukas Nelson and his new band opened the show with an hour-long set of earthy musical storytelling and a sound that wove together classic country and roots rock. Nelson has grown beyond the boundaries of his old band,  Promise of the Real, but he brought along a lot of that project’s memorable material, such as “Just Outside of Austin,” “Die Alone” and “Find Yourself.” An assured frontman with a distinct singing voice and muscular guitar chops, Nelson tucked in pleasing covers of J.J. Cale’s “Magnolia,” Tom Petty’s “American Girl” and his father’s “Bloody Mary Morning” alongside fiddle-and-pedal-steel-driven originals.

Derek Trucks performs at Tanglewood (Hilary Scott)

Tedeschi Trucks Band hit the stage with “Crazy Cryin’,” the first of three songs from the group’s latest album, Future Soul. But before playing those other two, Susan Tedeschi led the charge through “Little by Little,” a blues anthem popularized by her heroes Buddy Guy and Junior Wells. Tedeschi, who had surgery earlier in the summer to remove her appendix, was a powerhouse all night, singing and playing guitar with an unwavering authority.

After slowing down the pace with the new introspective ballad “Who Am I,” TTB launched a mind-blowing sequence of songs that zigged and zagged through a variety of sonic terrain, starting with the grungy rocker “Hero”—the night’s final dip into Future Soul. After that, singer Mike Mattison stepped forward to deliver his spectral “Emmaline.”

The mood then shifted to party mode with the bouncy soul of “They Don’t Shine,” a welcome return of a song from the overlooked Signs album. Then things became heavy with a thundering version of Neil Young’s universal protest song “Ohio,” performed via the 1971 arrangement conceived by the Isley Brothers, which fuses Jimi Hendrix’s “Machine Gun” onto the tune’s outro. Trucks was at his psychedelic best, tearing through the song, unafraid to unleash the nastiest of tones into the bucolic Berkshires.

That maelstrom dissolved into a free jazz jam featuring sax player Kebbi Williams and drummer Isaac Eady; it eventually pulled in the rest of the band for an extended take on the TTB signature song “Let Me Get By.”

After that flex of big-band power, things were broken down to basics, with keyboard player Gabe Dixon, singer Alecia Chakour, and Tedeschi performing a delicate but moving tribute to Dolly Parton with a cover of her song “Wildflowers.”

Dixon cranked up the volume and urgency a few songs later with his lead on a version of the Allman Brothers Band’s “Come and Go Blues.” Tedeschi delivered her own solid blues via “Just Won’t Burn,” a staple of her pre-TTB solo career that has become a nice fit in the big band.

A raucous but controlled version of Bob Dylan’s “Tangled Up in Blue” featured the first of three duels between Trucks and a horn player, this one with trumpeter Emmanuel Echem. Trucks and sax player Williams would later trade solos during a spellbinding version of “It Ain’t Fair,” sung by Chakour. Trucks and trombone player Elizabeth Lea then went horn to guitar during a blowout finale of “Space Captain” that also featured Chakour’s father and former Joe Cocker Band member Mitch Chakour on keys.

Tedeschi Trucks Band performs at Tanglewood. Photo: Hilary Scott

As generous as he is in sharing the spotlight, Trucks also put on quite a display of his guitar mastery, particularly when when he stretched out on the Allmans’ “Dreams,” which featured a beautiful transition passage out of “It Ain’t Fair” before blossoming into a sprawling array of jazz-infused blues.

Bassist Brandon Boone got his big solo turn during “I Want More,” a tune that usually segues into a tribute-style jam, which on this night was “Beck’s Bolero,” a Ravel-inspired piece that no doubt resonated with Tanglewood regulars in the Shed.

Singer Mark Rivers honored one of the region’s favorite sons when he sang a stirring version of James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain” as the night’s first encore.

Before reaching the boisterous “Space Captain” conclusion, Nelson joined TTB for the night’s second dip into the Young songbook for “Helpless,” delivered with all the yearning and ache they could muster from the guitars and voices on stage.

Sounding inspired and revitalized, TTB is heading into its final concerts of the summer: tonight and tomorrow in Bridgeport, and Sunday in Gilford, N.H.

Scott McLennan covered music for the Worcester Telegram & Gazette from 1993 to 2008. He then contributed music reviews and features to The Boston Globe, Providence Journal, Portland Press Herald, and WGBH, as well as to The Arts Fuse. He also operated the NE Metal blog to provide in-depth coverage of the region’s heavy metal scene.