Nikolai Lysenko studied piano under Ignaz Moscheles at the Leipzig Conservatory, which he entered in October 1867. Moscheles served as one of his piano teachers alongside K. Reinecke and E. Wenzel.
At the time Lysenko began his studies, Moscheles was 73 years old. Lysenko actively sought to enter his class and took private lessons, holding the view that being in Leipzig without studying under such a European celebrity was comparable to not seeing the Pope in Rome. He valued the opportunity to interact with Moscheles as a contemporary and friend of Beethoven, Hummel, and Clementi. While Lysenko noted the professor's biased views on modern art and the school of Liszt, he admired Moscheles's performance skills and his continued ability to play etudes.
