Tschaikowsky's Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36, was written between 1877 and 1878 and first performed at a Russian Musical Society concert in Saint Petersburg on February 1878 under Nikolai Rubinstein.

The finale of the symphony is generally judged by its success in rounding off the symphonic cycle into a cohesive whole. Tschaikowsky here repeats the 'Fate' motif which opened the piece and it could be said that it appeals to the patriotic and heroic feelings of his aristocratic listeners. ...