The tone poem is scored for a small orchestra of cor anglais, oboe, bass clarinet, two bassoons, four horns, three trombones, timpani, bass drum, harp, and divided strings. The cor anglais is the voice of the swan, and its solo is one of the best known cor anglais solos in the orchestral literature. The music paints a gossamer, transcendental image of a mystical swan floating through Tuonela, the realm of the dead. Lemminkäinen, the hero of the epic, has been tasked with killing the sacred swan; but on the way, he is shot with a poisoned arrow and dies. In the next part of the story he is restored to life.

Original Name Tuonelan joutsen
Date of composition 1895 (revised in 1897 and 1900)
First published 1901
Type Symphonic Poem
Tonality A Minor
Catalogue Op. 22/2
Approx. duration 9 minutes
Instruments Orchestra
Links
Autotranslations beta Jean Sibelius: The Swan of Tuonela en la mineur, Op. 22/2
Jean Sibelius: The Swan of Tuonela in la minore, Op. 22/2
Jean Sibelius: The Swan of Tuonela a-moll, Op. 22/2