 In 1824 Mendelssohn studied under the composer and piano virtuoso Ignaz Moscheles , who however confessed in his diaries that he had little to teach him . Moscheles became a close colleague and lifelong friend . The year 1827 saw the premiere – and sole performance in his lifetime – of Mendelssohn 's opera , Die Hochzeit des Camacho . The failure of this production left him disinclined to venture into the genre again . 
