Of the four symphonies on this disc, three, numbers 22 to 24, are known to have been composed in 1764. Haydn spent the early years of his employment in the service of the Esterházy family based almost entirely at their castle in the Burgenland town of Eisenstadt. The completion of the magnificent summer palace of Eszterháza was still a couple of years away: from about 1766, the court’s musical activities would be based there for much of the year. Back in Eisenstadt, Haydn’s original employer Prince Paul Anton had been succeeded by Nikolaus, who became renowned as one of the most culturally enlightened patrons of the late-eighteenth century. He soon set about a complete reorganisation of the court’s musical infrastructure, most notably enlarging the orchestra and employing many of the greatest instrumentalists of the day among its ranks. Here, even in the Prince’s absence, orchestral concerts were held every Tuesday and Saturday afternoon and demanded from Haydn a steady stream of symphonies and other works.