Composed in 1841, the D minor symphony received its world premiere at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig. It was met with a chilly reception that put Robert Schumann off to the point that he would not allow the symphony to be published. Ten years later, however, he dusted off the score, partly reworked it and entirely re-orchestrated it, and published it two years later under the name of Symphony No. 4.

The construction of the symphony is unusual. Although it employs the classical four-movement model (with a slow second and scherzo third movement), the four movements are performed in an uninterrupted sequence. Also, the entire music is interwoven with thematic correspondences and references. The six-note motif intoned at the start of the slow introduction in opening movement remains the motto of the entire symphony in that most of the subsequent themes can be derived from it. The ‘tempestuous’ D-minor main theme emerges at the end of the slow introduction, a new version of which appears later in the form of three energetically hit chords complemented and counterpointed by the incipit of the main theme. The closing movement is preceded by a connecting passage not unlike the one in Beethoven’s Fifth. Here too the music passes from darkness (D minor) to light (D major), leading to the joyfully exploding main theme of the finale, which is none other than the main theme of the opening movement combined with three chords. The brilliant D-major finale is, therefore, a sequel to the opening movement, ending in a triumphant coda.