The three works on this recording, written during the 1890s, reveal a skilful and assured figure in the process of working free of influences, notably Brahms. The Cello Sonata is a substantial work, notable for a dark-hued slow movement and a warmly lilting finale. While indebted to Brahms in its scoring, the Clarinet Trio is nonetheless Zemlinsky in its formal and expressive approach, and today certainly ranks among his most performed works.