Conversation so far:
Did Carl Nielsen have a hard time in Carl Nielsen's early years?
Nielsen was born the seventh of twelve children to a poor peasant family in 1865 at Sortelung near Norre Lyndelse, south of Odense on the island of Funen.
When did his his interest begin in playing violin?
when in bed with the measles, I had tried myself out on the little violin.
What happened after he tried the violin?
He learned the violin and piano as a child and wrote his earliest compositions at the age of eight or nine.
When did he begin to get recognition for his talent?
As his parents did not believe he had any future as a musician, they apprenticed him to a shopkeeper.
DId he continue with the violin and composing after becoming a shopkeeper?
Nielsen did not give up the violin during his time with the battalion.
Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?
After learning to play brass instruments, on 1 November 1879 he became a bugler and alto trombonist in the band of the army's 16th Battalion at nearby Odense.

Question: How did he end up in the army?
Self-contained rewrite: How did Carl Nielsen end up in the army?