Before the age of ten, Taneyev began study at the Moscow Conservatory. He studied piano and theory, as well as joining a composition class led by Tchaikovsky. He and Tchaikovsky were to become good friends and mutual critics, remaining so until Tchaikovsky's death. In 1878 Taneyev replaced Tchaikovsky at the conservatory, teaching harmony and orchestration classes. He went on to become one of the best Russian teachers of his time. Very critical of his own work, it was not until 1880 that Taneyev's compositions were first heard in public. He considered himself an eclectic, as well as a conservative, and had a great interest in contrapuntal composition. He was a very skilled craftsman, but his compositions are not especially imaginative, and, true to his eclectic tendencies, never settle into a distinct style. His work in large scale forms is particularly able, as in his opera The Oresteia. ~ Lynn Vought, All Music Guide