This eight-minute symphonic poem is an imaginative and very pretty piece based on a subject from Classical Antiquity, inspired by Ovid's Metamorphoses. It is the legend of the invention of the flute by the god Pan, who has been pursuing a nymph, Syrinx. Fleeing him, the nymph reaches a lake that cuts off her escape. The gods take pity on her, transforming her into a reed. From the reed, Pan built his original pan-pipe.

Obviously any piece concerning Syrinx is going to have major parts for woodwind solos. This eight-minute symphonic poem was written at the height of Nielsen's powers as a composer, right after he finished the Fourth Symphony. It is a vigorous, pretty, and poetic work.

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