Instead, he studied organ and composition at the Paris Conservatoire, where his reputation fostered his meeting and subsequent close friendship with Franz Liszt.

WSJ: Saint-Sa?ns and His World | Bard Music Festival | A Rich and Fertile Legacy Too Long Misunderstood | By Barrymore Laurence Scherer

At age 12 he met French composer Olivier Messiaen, and later he championed the composer's music and studied with his wife, Yvonne Loriod, at the Paris Conservatoire.

NPR: Pierre-Laurent Aimard and the Art of the Etude