After passing exams for the composition department of the St. Petersburg Conservatory, Nikolai Tcherepnin was accepted into the class of composer and music writer Nikolai Feopemptovich Soloviev.
In 1894, when Tcherepnin sought to transfer to Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's class, the latter required consent from Tcherepnin's previous professor. Soloviev did not object to the transition, allowing Tcherepnin to begin studies with Rimsky-Korsakov.
