Inevitably mournful but also vital in nature, the five-movement, hour-long work is cast in C minor and scored in Straussian vein for large orchestra.

Suk began to compose his funeral[1] symphony at the beginning of 1905, about eight months after Dvořák's death.

Karel Hoffmann and Jiří Herold, members of the Czech Quartet, attended the premiere as the concertmasters of the orchestra of the National Theatre.

[7] The composition is in five movements: The influence of Dvořák's composing style, apparent in Suk's previous work, is not noticeable in this composition, according to Vysloužil, who writes that Suk develops his musical language rather toward modern polyphonic and harmonic techniques.

[5] The symphony is scored for piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets in B-flat (A, E-flat), bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 6 horns (horns V and VI ad lib), 3 trumpets in C, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, triangle, cymbals, bass drum, harp, and strings.