Shostakovich was forced to "voluntarily" withdraw his fourth symphony by the Soviet authorities after a single rehearsal; the fifth symphony was the composer's response to that act, a work that—on the surface—told the authorities what they wanted to hear. It opens with an arresting dotted rhythm that will pervade the first movement, which unfolds as a series of interrelated episodes that alternate tragedy and anguish with moments of serene beauty. The third movement has a similar plan, so between the two Shostakovich inserts a scherzo that is equal parts Cossack dance and Mahlerian ländler, with biting harmonies and grotesque humor emphasized by the occasional insertion of an extra beat into the 3/4 meter.

After the slow third movement dispenses with the brass entirely, emphasizing strings (the violins divided into three sections instead of the usual two) and episodes for solo woodwinds and harp, the brass come roaring back in the finale, a D minor march that begins slowly but soon accelerates. After a slower central episode, timpani leads into a reprise of the march theme, resulting in a D major finale that was for many years believed to be a conclusion of genuine celebration. But in his 1979 memoir, Testament, Shostakovich relates that the rejoicing is forced, "as if someone is beating you with a stick and saying, "Your business is rejoicing, your business is rejoicing.'"