Prokofiev began work on what would become the Symphony-Concerto after completing his
Cello Sonata in 1949. The work was commissioned by Aleksandr Kholodilin, the head of the music division of the Committee on Artistic Affairs, with the completion date specified as 1 November 1951. The work drew, in part, on material contained in Prokofiev's earlier
Cello Concerto, which was premiered in 1938. Drafts of the new work were provided to Rostropovich for technical correction and refinement. The work was first performed, as Prokofiev's Second Cello Concerto, on 18 February 1952 in
Moscow, with Rostropovich as soloist and
Sviatoslav Richter as conductor. Following a review by the
Union of Soviet Composers, the concerto was further revised and retitled as the "Симфония-концерт" (commonly rendered in English as "Symphony-Concerto"). Prokofiev died before the final version was performed: the first performance of that version took place on 9 December 1954 with Rostropovich as soloist, accompanied by the
Danish State Radio Symphony Orchestra under the direction of
Thomas Jensen. The Symphony-Concerto was one of several compositions for cello on which Prokofiev worked from the late 1940s until his death. In addition to the Cello Sonata, Prokofiev also commenced work on two unfinished works: a sonata for unaccompanied cello (for which he wrote 14 pages of sketches), and a
Cello Concertino (later completed by Rostropovich). ==Music==