as late as 23 january 1918, in a letter to swedish composer wilhelm stenhammar, nielsen explained that although he had included "pan and syrinx" in his concert on 11 february, he had not yet written a single note. it appears, however, that he had been thinking about the piece for some time, ever since he and his wife anne marie had discussed ovid's metamorphoses the previous year, inspiring him to compose the music. he did however manage to complete the score by 6 february.