Salonen Conducts 'An Alpine Symphony'

Heckelphone, organ, thunder machine, and other orchestral effects make for a thrilling Alpine adventure, thanks to tour guide Richard Strauss, who translates these timbres into chirping birds, burbling brooks, yodeling shepherds, and raging storms. But first violin visionary Leonidas Kavakos blazes his own path into Tchaikovsky’s beloved concerto—beyond its famous razzle-dazzle, close to its beating heart.