Fyodor Kanille taught Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov piano and composition in 1859–1862. In 1862, Kanille introduced him to Mily Balakirev and his musical circle, later known as the Mighty Handful.
Rimsky-Korsakov later wrote that drafts for the beginning of his First Symphony already existed during his years of study with Kanille. He dedicated the symphony to Kanille in 1862 and his romance “Rise, Descend, Long-Ago Morning Star,” to words by Lev Mey, in 1870.
