Hendrik Andriessen’s Symphony No. 4 marks the absolute zenith of his oeuvre, and represents a perfect expression of his multifaceted artistic capabilities. As in the Symphonic Étude from the same year, here too the composer employs a twelve-tone melody in the interest of cyclical unity. The harmonic language of the work is not the consequence of the twelve-tone melody, though it of course underscores its special character. At the same time Andriessen juggles meters and tempos, with serious and profound moments alternating with dance elements. While in the Libertas Venit rhapsody many passages recall the dark days of the German occupation, his Capriccio is in every respect a light-hearted piece of music. Written in 1941, perhaps the composer wrote it as an antidote to the horrors of World War II. The score is brilliant, very tonal, direct, and carefully thought out with swiftly alternating tempos and moods.