Symphony No. 4 in A minor
Jean Sibelius
Work background
Researched classical background
Sibelius's Fourth opens in the low register and makes the unstable tritone interval central to its musical language. Its four movements turn away from a conventional sequence of triumphal climaxes. The third movement unfolds slowly, while the finale brings brighter gestures into contact with the work's darker harmonic material before ending without a grand major-key resolution.
A listening guide
Trace the tritone in the opening and compare the finale's brighter colours with its restrained ending.
Listening suggestions are editorial guides to the music.
Forces: Orchestra
Composition: 1911
1911 is the completion year. No literal illness or landscape programme is asserted.
This entry describes the musical work or cycle. Composition, premiere and publication dates describe different events. Performers and recordings can be explored through the external listening search.
Sibelius.fi: Fourth Symphony
Composition chronology and analysis | Reviewed 2026-10-19
Sources for this work
Sibelius.fi: Fourth Symphony
Composition chronology and analysis | Reviewed 2026-10-19
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