This weekend, the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s Total Immersion festival is dedicated to Henri Dutilleux, marking what would have been his centenary. Dutilleux was composing right until the end of his long life (he died in 2013, aged 97), his deeply human music providing a vital link between the worlds of Debussy, Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and the 21st century. Conductor Pascal Rophé, who will be leading the BBCSO’s celebration, picks his five key Dutilleux compositions, works that reveal the French composer’s magical and unique soundworld.

Tout un monde lointain … (1967/70)

Dutilleux’s cello concerto, written for Mstislav Rostropovich, derives its title (“A whole distant world”) from the poem La Chevelure by Baudelaire, from the collection Les Fleurs du mal. This masterpiece demonstrates the fundamental connection between poetry and music in Dutilleux’s works – each of the five movements is inspired by a Baudelaire poem.

Métaboles (1963/64)

This is another magical piece. It is a concerto for orchestra with a first movement dedicated mainly to the woodwind, the second to strings, the third to brass, the fourth to percussion and the last to the entire orchestra. The title means “metamorphosis” – and in scientific language, metabolae are insects that undergo metamorphosis.

Ainsi la nuit for string quartet (1971/77)

Dutilleux’s only string quartet explores the poetic, spiritual and cosmic ideas of night. Many of the movement titles demonstrate his fascination for Bartók’s “night music” pieces.

The Shadows of Time (1995-97/2005)

This moving meditation on loss, commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, took Dutilleux many years to write. Like all French people of his generation, he was deeply affected by the second world war. The poignant third movement is dedicated to “Anne Frank and all innocent children of the world”, and includes the voices of three trebles asking “Why us? Why the star?”.

Le temps l’horloge (2006/2007)

Dutilleux’s final orchestral work, for soprano and orchestra, was inspired by the US soprano Renée Fleming. It’s based on poems by Jean Tardieu, Robert Desnos and Charles Baudelaire and shows the full trajectory of Dutilleux’s genius. Even towards the end of his life, Dutilleux was exploring new orchestral colours, as can be heard in his use of accordion and harpsichord.