Danish composer Niels Wilhelm Gade (1817-1890) completed his SYMPHONY No. 1 in C minor, Op. 5, in 1842 with the intention of having it performed by the Copenhagen Music Society, an opportunity which that organization rejected. Following this, Gade turned to one who would become his greatest champion and his friend, Felix Mendelssohn. Mendelssohn was charmed by the work, and it was premiered by under his baton by the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig on March 2, 1843. The work never found a performance with orchestra in Copenhagen for which it was intended. The work is very much entrenched in the German Romantic tradition, but Gade utilized several Danish folk songs as thematic material throughout. Instrumentation: 2+Picc.2.2.2+CBsn: 4.2.3.1: Timp: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set).