The Little Suite for Strings, op 1, FS 6 and this composition are Nielsen's first orchestral works, written in 1888, when the composer was twenty-three. The "Symphonic Rhapsody was planned as part of a symphony. It is a seven-minute movement in sonata-allegro form, in the key of F Major.

It is not that easy to hear Nielsen's creative personality in this work, except in the orchestration, where Nielsen's lean sound is discernible. The main thematic ideas of the rhapsody are interesting, and they are presented well. The rhapsody's drawback is its disproportionality. The themes do not have strong potential for symphonic development, and they are subjected to more of it than they can bear. Nielsen did not list it among his opus numbers and he never published it. Of interest mainly to particular fans of Nielsen.

© All Music Guide