Deryk Barker:

>I believe RVW acknowledged using Beethoven 5 as the structural model for
>his 4th symphony.

He also admitted to "cribbing" the opening chord from the finale of
Beethoven's 9th.

>Incidentally, although that 4-note theme has sometimes mistaken for BACH,
>it's actually BAHB.

Actually, that theme undergoes many transformations, one of which is BACH,
which appears (according to my OUP full score) as early as measures 3-4:
Db-C-Eb-D, or B-A-C-H transposed up a minor 3rd.

(For more on the thematic development in the VW 4th, see my Listener's
Guide at:

   http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/works/v-w/v-wsymoverview.html
)

Steve Schwartz