The sketches for the Cello Sonata emerged after Prokofiev heard the young cellist Mstislav Rostropovich playing for the first time. It was 1947, and Rostropovich performed the Cello Sonata by Nikolai Myaskovsky. Apparently, Prokofiev was so inspired by this performance that he conceived the idea of writing a cello composition specifically for Rostropovich.

The Sonata for Cello and Piano in three movements was completed in 1949. The premiere was performed the following year by Mstislav Rostropovich, with Sviatoslav Richter at the piano. Before the premiere, Prokofiev invited the young cellist for a dress rehearsal. Rostropovich recalled many amusing stories about that time.

The Cello Sonata was the beginning of a friendship between the two musicians. After the successful premiere, Prokofiev composed another work for Rostropovich — the Symphony-Concerto.

“Some time after the performance of the Cello Sonata (on March 1, 1950), Prokofiev decided to start working on the Symphony-Concerto. He always strived to make his music interesting from the point of view of all instruments and tried to make the best use of their technical and expressive possibilities. Sergei Sergeyevich asked me to bring him some repertoire pieces for cello ‘of any quality’ which would serve as examples of interesting virtuoso passagework and contain a range of diverse and modern cello techniques. I duly took along a pile of works by Popper, Davydov, and other similar cellists. For some time, Sergei Sergeyevich studied the technical aspects of cello in these compositions, and each time we met, he remarked sardonically, ‘Well, that’s quite some music you gave me, isn’t it…’”

The Concerto was premiered on February 18, 1952 and was marked by unique cooperation: Mstislav Rostropovich was soloing, and Sviatoslav Richter conducted his first and only concert.