iated in his time along with ours. He started composing in 1860 and completed an Italian Song, which was published. "He soon met the Rubinstein brothers, Anton and Nickolai; both were composers, and Anton was a pianist second only to France Liszt in technical brilliance and fame. In 1862 Anton opened Russia's first conservatory, under the sponsorship of the Imperial Russian Music Society (I.R.M.S.); in St. Petersburg, and Tchaikovsky was its first composition student" (Ewen, 375). In 1862, Tchaikovsky left the government service and enrolled in the then Newly founded Conservatory. He combined his studies with Zaremba, a member of the Conservatory Faculty, and Anton Rubinstein with lessons in harmony, counterpoint, and orchestration. "Do not for one moment think that I expected to be a great artist.' He wrote to his sister. 'Whether I become a famous composer or a poor music teacher is a matter of indifference to me. At all events, my conscience will be clear and I shall no longer have thought to complain about my lot" (Cross and Ewen, 1028). Now
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