Lemminkäinen Suite, Op. 22 ‘Four Legends’ - Jean Sibelius

Lemminkäinen Suite, Op. 22 ‘Four Legends’ by Jean Sibelius

Sibelius completed this suite in 1895, with the premiere performance being held in April 1896 in Helsinki, Finland. Sibelius had originally intended for the work to be an opera based on the folk hero Lemminkäinen from Finnish mythology. Sibelius instead decided to adapt the work into a suite.

The work is comprised of four movements: I. Lemminkäinen and the Maidens of the Island 00:00 II. The Swan of Tuonela 17:09 III. Lemminkäinen in Tuonela 26:55 IV. Lemminkäinen's Return 42:51

The second movement ‘The Swan of Tuonela’ is the most well recognised section of this suite and begins at 17:09.