Editing 1812 Overture (section)

===Commission===
The [[Cathedral of Christ the Saviour]], commissioned in 1812 by [[Alexander I of Russia|Tsar Alexander I]] to commemorate the Russian victory, was nearing completion in Moscow in 1880; the 25th anniversary of the coronation of Alexander II would be at hand in 1881; and the 1882 All-Russia Arts and Industry Exhibition at Moscow was in the planning stage. Tchaikovsky's friend and mentor [[Nikolai Rubinstein]] suggested that he write a grand commemorative piece for use in related festivities. Tchaikovsky began work on the project on 12 October 1880, finishing it six weeks later.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Russell|first=Peter|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zsNTDwAAQBAJ&dq=%2212+October+1880%22+1812&pg=PT116|title=Delphi Masterworks of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Illustrated)|publisher=Delphi Classics|year=2018|isbn=978-1-78656-123-7|language=en}}</ref>

Organizers planned to have the overture performed in the square before the cathedral, with a brass band to reinforce the orchestra, the bells of the cathedral, and all the others in downtown Moscow playing "[[Russian Orthodox bell ringing#Technique of ringing|zvons]]" (pealing bells) on cue{{snd}}and cannons, fired from an electric switch panel to achieve the precision the musical score required. However, this performance did not take place, possibly due in part to the over-ambitious plan. Regardless, the [[Alexander II of Russia#Assassination|assassination of Alexander II]] that March deflated much of the impetus for the project. In 1882, during the All-Russia Arts and Industry Exhibition, the Overture was performed in a tent next to the unfinished cathedral.<ref name="Tchaikovsky: A Listener's Guide"/> The cathedral was completed on 26 May 1883.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.xxc.ru/english/history/index.htm |title=Cathedral of Christ the Saviour: History |access-date=26 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110515162509/http://www.xxc.ru/english/history/index.htm |archive-date=15 May 2011 }}</ref>

Meanwhile, Tchaikovsky complained to his patron [[Nadezhda von Meck]] that he was "...&nbsp;not a conductor of festival pieces," and that the ''Overture'' would be "...&nbsp;very loud and noisy, but [without] artistic merit, because I wrote it without warmth and without love." He put it together in six weeks. It is this work that would make the Tchaikovsky estate exceptionally wealthy, as it is one of the most performed and recorded works from his catalog.<ref name=cathedralsite>{{cite web|url=http://www.xxc.ru/english/index.htm|title=Official website of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour|work=Cathedral of Christ the Saviour|access-date=10 January 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150401020922/http://www.xxc.ru/english/index.htm|archive-date=1 April 2015}}</ref><ref name=russianallegory>{{cite web|url=http://www.byzantines.net/epiphany/christsavior.htm|title=Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow: A Russian Allegory|access-date=10 January 2010|archive-date=29 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081229182612/http://www.byzantines.net/epiphany/christsavior.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=churhcesaroundtheworld>{{cite web|url=http://churchesaroundtheworld.com/tag/churches/churches-in-russia/moscow/|title=Churches Around the World Archive|access-date=10 January 2010|archive-date=4 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081204151711/http://churchesaroundtheworld.com/tag/churches/churches-in-russia/moscow/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In Russia, during the [[Soviet era]], the imperial anthem was replaced with the chorus "[[Slavsya|Glory, Glory to you, holy Rus'!]]" (''Славься, славься, святая Русь!''), which came from the finale of [[Mikhail Glinka]]'s opéra ''[[A Life for the Tsar|Ivan Susanin]]'', a historical drama about a patriotic commoner of [[Ivan Susanin|the same name]]. The original version of the song, written by [[Vasily Zhukovsky]] and [[Egor Fyodorovich Rozen]], praised the Tsar and the [[Russian Tsardom]], while the latter version by [[Sergey Gorodetsky]] was one of a patriotic form and is sometimes regarded as the unofficial anthem of Russia in the 20th century and even today. With the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]] at the end of the [[Cold War]], the original score returned.<ref>[http://www.hymn.ru/god-save-in-tchaikovsky/index-en.html Russian national anthem "God Save the Tsar" in Tchaikovsky's music] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060710215953/http://www.hymn.ru/god-save-in-tchaikovsky/index-en.html |date=10 July 2006 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Norris |first=Geoffrey |date=1 May 2018 |title=Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture: the complete guide |url=https://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/article/tchaikovsky-s-1812-overture-the-complete-guide |access-date=2022-09-26 |website=Gramophone |language=en |archive-date=12 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210212213023/https://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/article/tchaikovsky-s-1812-overture-the-complete-guide |url-status=live }}</ref>