Prokofiev composed the last of his five piano concerti not long before his return to the USSR from abroad. Like the Fourth Concerto, this work is incredibly laconic in terms of scale; its five movements last some twenty-five minutes altogether. The kaleidoscopic change of moods gives the concerto the features of a suite. In the odd-numbered movements, and in particular in the central brief toccata, the strength and dynamism so typical of Prokofiev’s piano style make themselves known. The second movement is in the composer’s beloved genre of a gavotte. The lyrical core of the work is the fourth movement, the longest part of the cycle, which leads into the virtuoso finale.
