The Symphony No. 5 is from a group of eight symphonies English composer William Boyce had published in 1760. Boyce compiled these instrumental pieces from larger works he had written between 1737 and 1756 as Master of the King's Musick. He originally wrote the Symphony No. 5 in 1739 as an overture to his Ode for St. Cecilia's Day. As one of the earliest of the bunch, this work is thoroughly Baroque and may have sounded dated. But, apparently the public successfully received the pieces at time of their publication.

The symphony's three-movement format is based on the Italian opera overture scheme (fast-slow-fast). In fact, the first movement itself, encapsulates this Italian form as it is divided into three parts: Allegro ma non troppo-Adagio ad lib.-Allegro assai. The Allegro ma non troppo is in the two-part binary form (AABB) so closely associated with the keyboard sonatas of Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757). Section A is repeated and harmonically open-ended. It leads directly into section B that is based on similar material. With trumpets and timpani, this movement has the pomposity and grandeur of George Frideric Handel (1685-1759), the strongest musical influence in London at that time. A very short cadenza-like oboe solo leads into the Allegro assai, which is fugal in nature with an effective unison near the end. The Tempo di Gavotta, stately yet perky, is in the binary form as is the more rustic final movement, Tempo di Minuetto. Other than a couple of solo passages, the oboes double the strings, while the brass and percussion add color and a real sense of occasion. In spite of the towering shadow of Handel, Boyce emerges as a fresh and significant voice of the late English Baroque.

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