 Holst conceived the idea of "The Planets" in 1913, partly as a result of his interest in astrology, and also from his determination, despite the failure of "Phantastes", to produce a large-scale orchestral work.The chosen format may have been influenced by Schoenberg's "Fünf Orchesterstücke", and shares something of the aesthetic, Matthews suggests, of Debussy's "Nocturnes" or "La mer".Holst began composing "The Planets" in 1914; the movements appeared not quite in their final sequence; "Mars" was the first to be written, followed by "Venus" and "Jupiter".