Zoltán Kodály was influential not only as a composer and an educator, but in establishing a national Hungarian musical tradition that included a profound respect for its folk music. Kodály’s early reputation is centred on chamber music, including the Duo for Violin and Cello, with its remarkably sustained structural development and emotional range. The imaginative approach to Classical forms and considerable technical demands found in the Sonata for Solo Cello has, during the century since its composition, ensured the sonata’s status as the most significant work for solo cello since J.S. Bach’s Cello Suites.