Who awarded a lifetime pension in 1884 to the composer of the Festival Overture on the Danish National Anthem?
Festival Overture on the Danish National Anthem During his time at the Moscow Conservatoire, around September 1866 the school's principal, Nikolay Rubinstein commissioned Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky to compose a Festival Overture on the Danish National Anthem to be played for the visit of the Tsarevich (heir to the throne) to Moscow, accompanied by his new Danish bride, Princess Dagmar of Denmark. The Tsarrevich would eventually be crowned Tsar Alexander III of Russia and remain a devoted follower of Tchaikovsky's music, awarding the composer both the Order of St. Vladimir (Fourth Class) in 1884 and a state pension in 1885.
Søvnen Søvnen ("The Sleep"), for chorus and orchestra, Opus 18, is Carl Nielsen's second major choral work. It was first performed at the Music Society ("Musikforeningen") in Copenhagen on 21 March 1905 under the baton of the composer.