Despite Dutilleux being a "big name" composer, it's only recently that I've personally become acquainted with any of his works except for a flute sonatina I had heard some time ago. I'm happy to be adding some familiarity with his output to my listening. Case in point is his lovely L'Arbre des songes (The Tree of Dreams) violin concerto, a single-movement, but multi-sectional, work of great beauty. Written for the legendary Isaac Stern, the work simultaneously eschews pure virtuosity while keeping the soloist engaged in an enchanting sonic adventure with the orchestra; the violinist is a member of the group, is apart from the group, comments on the orchestra's gestures, provides gestures to be commented upon, etc. In other words, the soloist remains a soloist, despite little in the way of soloistic writing, a neat idea skillfully explored by Dutilleux.

This world-premiere recording features the performers from the world-premiere performance; Stern is joined by the ONF and the excellent Lorin Maazel. As a bonus, the recording also features the world-premiere recording of Max Davies' violin concerto, a quite interesting piece, too.