The work is inspired by the poem of the same name found in Kytice, a collection of folk ballads by Karel Jaromír Erben.
[1] It is scored for piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, triangle, harp, and strings.
While out riding in the countryside, a king happens upon a beautiful village girl, Dornička, and falls in love with her.
Meanwhile, in the midst of the forest, a hermit skilled in magical arts finds Dornička's remains and decides to bring her back to life.
As she obliges, the magical spinning wheel sings a song betraying the two women's treacherous plot and relaying all the gruesome details of Dornička's murder.