Bax finished the score of his Romantic Overture in April 1926. On the title page, Bax notes that the piece is for orchestra, but at the top of the score is the inscription, "for chamber orchestra." The forces consist of two flutes (one doubling on piccolo), one oboe, two clarinets, two bassoons, trumpet, piano, and strings. For Bax, at least, this was a chamber orchestra. The absence of low brass creates an brighter woodwind sound and makes for a lighter overall effect than what we hear in many of Bax's works. The first performance of the 13-minute piece, dedicated to Frederick Delius (1862 - 1934), took place in January 1927, in the New Chenil Galleries in London, with John Barbirolli conducting and Rae Robertson at the piano. The full score was published by Murdoch in 1928.

Bax visited Delius in Grez-sur-Loing in April 1926. Shortly thereafter he visited his friend, Philip Heseltine (aka Peter Warlock) for an extended holiday in Eynsford. It was in Eynsford that Bax composed the Romantic Overture, and Heseltine's presence and sense of humor surely influenced Bax. For instance, Heseltine had earlier written a comical evocation of César Franck's Symphony in D minor in the "Cod Piece" of his The Old Codger. Perhaps prodded by this example, Bax inserted a two-measure quote of the Franck Symphony into his Romantic Overture.

The material of Bax's Romantic Overture is somewhat plain, with forays into the bouncy rhythms and chromatic inflections that mark most of his works, while sonata form and thematic transformation dictate the shape of the piece. The piano part verges on obbligato in many places and the effect, by the end, falls just short of a work for piano and orchestra. In this respect, it foreshadows Winter Legends, for piano and orchestra, composed in 1930. The most memorable tune of the Romantic Overture appears near the end of the piece. Neo-classical ideas pop up in Romantic Overture, a characteristic that would become more developed in the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra of 1937.

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