Rimsky-Korsakov, in his "Chronicle of my Musical Life," gives some interesting glimpses of the pleasant relations existing between the members of the nationalist circle during the early years of its existence. Rimsky-Korsakov, who was studying at the Naval School, St. Petersburg, made the acquaintance of Balakirev in 1861. "My first meeting with Balakirev made an immense impression upon me," he writes. "He was an admirable pianist, playing everything from memory. The audacity of his opinions and their novelty, above all, his gifts as a composer, stirred me to a kind of veneration. The first time I saw him I showed him my Scherzo in C minor, which he approved, after passing a few remarks upon it, and some materials for a symphony. He ordained that I should go on with the symphony.[30] Of course I was delighted. At his house I met Cui and Moussorgsky. Balakirev was then orchestrating the overture to Cui's early opera _The Prisoner in the Caucasus_. With what enthusiasm I took a share in these actual discussions about instrumentation, the distribution of parts, etc! Through November and December I went to Balakirev's every Saturday evening and frequently found Cui and Moussorgsky there. I also made the acquaintance of Stassov. I remember an evening on which Stassov read aloud extracts from "The Odyssey," more especially for my enlightenment. On another occasion Moussorgsky read "Prince Kholmsky," the painter Myassedov read Gogol's "Viya," and Balakirev and Moussorgsky played Schumann's symphonies arranged for four hands, and Beethoven's quartets."