Martinů’s Fourth Symphony was written between 1 April and 14 June 1945. In the middle of its composition, on 7 May, German forces surrendered to the allies. The following day, 8 May, has been known as ‘VE Day’ (‘Victory in Europe Day’) ever since. Martinů’s native land had finally been delivered from the clutches of the Nazis. Although he never made any explicit connection between these momentous events and the nature of the Fourth Symphony, it is hard to believe that its glowing sounds, its vigour and sheer love of life, are mere coincidence. Admittedly, he had completed the first two movements before VE Day, but even at the start of April the situation for Germany had looked desperate, as Allied forces to the West and the Russian army in the East made their final advances. The optimism expressed tentatively towards the end of the Third Symphony bursts out unrestrainedly in its successor, even though Martinů had received the sad news the previous December of his mother’s death in March. These tidings were perhaps not unexpected – she had, after all, reached the grand age of 89 – and have no influence upon the mood of this work, nor indeed its immediate predecessor, the expansive and lyrical Second Cello Concerto. The Fourth Symphony voices emotions of joy, ebullience, serenity and jubilation – each a positive state of mind expressed with the highest intensity that Martinů could muster. Small wonder that this Symphony is his most popular. It is one of his busiest ambassadors in the concert hall and one of his most frequently recorded works.

The Fourth Symphony (H305) calls for an orchestra as large as that of the First, though made up slightly differently. As in his remaining Symphonies, Martinů dispenses with the harp. The woodwind section is the largest in the symphonies, with three flutes and three oboes in addition to piccolo and cor anglais – thirteen players in all. Both symphonies require three percussionists besides the timpanist, and the Fourth adds a wood block to the array of instruments specified. The formal layout of the work likewise recalls the First: four equally weighty movements with the Scherzo second and slow movement third.