Anton Rubinstein is probably a name you don't hear very often in the top tier of great Russian composers. In addition to being a piano virtuoso on par with Franz Liszt and other greats of his time, Rubinstein was a well-respected teacher and founder of the ST. PETERSBURG CONSERVATORY. In fact, one of his most famous students was none other than Tchaikovsky himself! Rubinstein's music, though seldom heard nowadays, had a great affect on the development of a Russian national style of music. This is particularly evident in his opera The Demon. The opera tells the story of a demon who is ordered to destroy creation, but who falls in love with a mortal woman.