[1][2] The string quartet is in three movements, lasting around 20–25 minutes.
The work is distinctive in that its key, B minor, is just a semitone below the limits of the viola and cello range.
Another distinctive feature is that the finale is a slow movement, which is highly intense in emotion and full of sweeping melodies.
Prokofiev had liked the finale so much that he transcribed a version of it for string orchestra, as Op.
50a, and included a piano transcription in his pieces as Op.