[4] The premiere took place under the baton of Felix Mendelssohn on 31 March 1841 in Leipzig, where the symphony was warmly received.

[5] According to Clara's diary, the title "Spring Symphony" was bestowed upon it due to Adolf Böttger's poem Frühlingsgedicht.

Further on in the introduction, I would like the music to suggest the world’s turning green, perhaps with a butterfly hovering in the air, and then, in the Allegro, to show how everything to do with spring is coming alive...

[1]The symphony is scored for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, timpani, triangle and strings.

The last movement of the symphony also uses the final theme of Kreisleriana, and therefore recalls the romantic and fantastic inspiration of the composer's piano compositions.

On 4 January 2014 broadcast of BBC Radio 3's CD Review – Building a Library, music critic Erica Jeal surveyed recordings of the Symphony No.