Jean Sibelius composed the King Christian II Suite in 1898. The concert suite is a selection from Sibelius's own incidental music—originally composed for the Scandinavian historical play King Christian II (written by his friend Adolf Paul).
The original play deals with the love of King Christian II, ruler of Denmark, Sweden and Norway, for a Dutch girl Dyvecke, a commoner.
A complete performance of the suite takes about 25 minutes.
The suite consists of five movements:
| Movement | Type | Tempo | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nocturne | Molto moderato | A love scene. |
| 2 | Elegy | Andante sostenuto | The original introduction to the incidental music. Scored only for strings. |
| 3 | Musette | Allegretto | Dyvecke's dance. Originally scored for clarinets and bassoons, but strings added for the incidental music. |
| 4 | Serenade | Moderato assai (Quasi menuetto) | Taken from the prelude to the third act of the play (music for the court ball). |
| 5 | Ballade | Allegro molto | The tempestuous music reflects the anger of the King. |
The Incidental music included an additional movement: the Fool's Song of the Spider.