[1] It was commissioned by the Philharmonia Orchestra, which gave the premiere of the symphony at the Royal Festival Hall, London, on 2 February 1978, with Simon Rattle conducting.

In order to increase his understanding of large-scale orchestral composition, Davies analysed a number of other composers' works, and cites Sibelius's Fifth Symphony, the opening of Schumann's Second Symphony, and the first movement, "Don", from Pierre Boulez's Pli selon pli as precedents for specific moments of the composition.

As the work evolved, Davies came to the conviction that it "could mark the possibility of a beginning of an orchestral competence", and so decided to designate it a Symphony.

[4] The second movement is a lento that turns into a scherzo, beginning with a statement of the plainsong Ave maris stella in the alto flute.

It reaches a climax with an emergence of the "Ave maris stella" material in the form found in Davies's composition of the same title.