The symphonic poem Tapiola is the final major composition for orchestra that Sibelius was able to complete and publish. It was commissiones by the conductor Walter Damrosch for the New York Philharmonic and was premiered on 26 December 1926. Taking the forest god Tapio as name giver, Sibelius once more got his inspiration from Finish mythology.

The present arrangement by Einar Englund and Peter Lönnqvist now allows a performance in the course of a chamber music concert. By choosing the scoring for piano for four hands, or alternatively for two pianos, the arrangement stays as close as possible to Sibeliusʼs complex orchestral texture.