Symphony No. 4 in C major was completed in 1933 by Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Schmidt (1874 - 1939). It is the best known and final of his four late romantic symphonies. The composer called it "A requiem for my daughter", referring to Emma who died unexpectedly after the birth of her first child. Schmidt is often seen as a Nazi sympathizer, although the facts do not support that point of view. Anyway, this symphony is an excellent one, and can be considered the last in the long line of great Romantic symphonies from Austria and Germany. The average playing time is 47 minutes (AllMusic). I have two versions, of which I have a preference for the London Philharmonic under Franz Welser-Möst on an EMI CD.
