Swedish-born composer Franz Berwald wrote Elfenspiel, or "The Play of the Elves," during a particularly productive period while he was living in Vienna. His five symphonic tone poems and four symphonies dating from this time were apparently quite popular with the Viennese public. But this was a success he never seemed to achieve in his own homeland. Today, Berwald is viewed as nineteenth-century Sweden's greatest composer.

Elfenspiel is a symphonic tone poem, a nineteenth-century orchestral form based on a literary or realistic idea. Usually in one movement, its purpose was to evoke or represent a given extramusical inspiration such as a natural scene, a play, a novel, a poem, etc. Interestingly, the structural scheme is almost a ternary form rather than a pure sonata-allegro format: introduction, section A with first and second themes, section B developmental in nature, a reprise of the A section with the themes in reverse order, and a coda. Elfenspiel opens mysteriously with a rising unison melody that establishes an ambiguous tonal center topped off by four carefully placed pizzicato notes. This tentatively somber two-and-a-half minute introduction turns into an exchange between the warmly lush melody based on the opening unison and a countertheme strikingly reminiscent of the infamous four-note "fate" motif of Beethoven's Symphony No. 5. A lively fugal section A ensues, based on new material in 6/8 time. Sprightly and dance-like, the music sounds as if it is depicting the mischief making of Puck's Swedish cousins. (Speaking of Puck, the energy and atmosphere here are similar to those of Felix Mendelssohn's overture to A Midsummer Night's Dream.) As is Berwald's tendency, short, new melodies pop up like wildflowers. His talent lies in the manipulation of melodic fragments or thematic motives, almost in the manner of Beethoven. A more lilting, lyrical second theme appears, providing contrast to the rhythmically oriented fugal theme. The B section has the transitory, volatile feeling of a development section, with some counterpoint and sequence activity. After reaching a powerful climax, the A section returns in reverse, with the lyrical theme first followed by the fugal theme, which in turn leads to a furiously fast coda with surprising new material. With an impishly diabolical trill, the piece comes to an end.

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