LEAD IN:

A choir without a voice is set to tour Europe to raise awareness of the plight of throat cancer patients.

The group, fitted with artificial voice boxes, call themselves "Shout at Cancer" because they're fighting back against the cancer which robbed them of their ability to speak.

STORY-LINE:

Thanks to this choir, these people are able to 'shout' again and they're aiming to 'let it all out' as loudly as they possibly can.

The words of the song by the 1980s pop band "Tears for Fears" is special to them and they've named themselves "Shout at Cancer" because of it.

Here the choir's been given the opportunity of performing at the Royal College of Surgeons in London.

They're all on a mission to make people, including doctors, aware of how isolating and difficult it is to have throat cancer.

While most physicians understand the trauma of having cancer, not not everyone understands what it's like to live after having your voice taken away.

Apart from a few specialist voices, everyone here has had an operation to have their larynx cut out and their windpipe brought through to a hole made in the front of their throats.

The laryngectomy is a complex operation which takes several hours.

Afterwards breathing is never the same again.

Patients have to master the technique of using a valve which becomes a permanent reminder of the cancer.

To speak, patients have to draw air through the hole in their windpipe and use the valve to trap the air into the mouth.

This allows them to manipulate the air to form what doctors call a 'valve voice'.

Margaret Young discovered she had thyroid cancer over seven years ago, she thought it had been treated, but it spread and before Christmas two years ago she discovered it had metasticised.

It would not have occurred to Young to join a choir before her cancer, but she was persuaded to do it by a speech therapist who'd heard about "Shout at Cancer".

She remembers: "They kept saying I should join the choir, but I've never been able to sing, so they fooled me by saying, well you don't really have to sing, it's just speech therapy and well, they lied, because we do sing and that's how I've ended up in the choir. But it's nice to meet other people in the same position because you can become very isolated, it would be easy to become isolated."

Andrew Beaumont was among the first members of the choir.

He, like Young, had his voice box removed when his cancer spread.

Beaumont is a vigorous advocate for the charity: "It is absolutely essential, it stretches the tonal range one is able to create and apart from the social side, the sense of community and a sense of purpose. You know it's very important to have a sense of purpose in all things and this charity is unique in doing that for laryngectomees."

Shout at Cancer is also a charity which helps to fund the choir.

Thomas Moors is the co-founder and one of an array of medical experts from scientists, voice therapists, musicians and surgeons who are raising money to spearhead new research.

They want a scientific enquiry into how music therapy can be used aid voice exercises for people who have had laryngectomies and examine how it can be used to ensure they're not isolated by the rest of society.

Although there are published studies physical problems experienced by laryngectomees, there is little research on their their emotional welfare or the psychosocial implications of the operation.

An additional problem is that most laryngectomees are nearing retirement which means they are more easily isolated.

Evangelos Himonides from University College London is among the scientists aiming to use music as a tool to help survivors of throat cancer.

"There's nothing about all the psychosocial factors that are part of this game and anything that is to do with how we can foster the development of these people, how we can enable their engagement and how we can help them gain the confidence and the support structures and all the different understandings that need to be in place, so that they can return back to society, they can relinquish the stigma that is connected to this."

The charity says there is simply not enough research, or progress into using new technologies because the number of laryngectomies each year are relatively few.

Here in the UK there are fewer than 1,800 operations a year according to "Shout at Cancer".

During the concert, choir member Jean Cooper reads her testimonial: "I thought I would never talk again and I did, I thought I would never sing again and I have. Now I know I can do anything and I will, I am me again."

Though the sentiment is personal, her experience is shared by the rest of the choir.

As well as conducting, Dr. Thomas Moors is the choir's director and cofounder of Shout at Cancer.

He is hoping the choir will make people sit up and understand the needs of people surviving throat cancer - better social support, better voice training services and even research into better technology.

Moors says: "Up to thirty percent, forty percent of them get into social isolation because of the effect on their voice and psychological affects. Does it have an effect by them joining the choir, yes. As soon as they do it, after their first concert, but (also) going and preparing and meeting up and having the group effect and enjoying the music and the sound they are producing together, it has an amazingly uplifting effect on them and they are the best ambassadors for this project themselves, because they go out and they spread the word and they are so enthusiastic about it that sometimes I even have to ask them to shut up. (laughs)."

As well as planning a number of Christmas concerts, next spring the choir will travel Brussels and Barcelona to spread their message.

AP TELEVISION - Music/video/performance rights must be cleared

London, UK - 5 October 2016

1. Mid of Shout at Cancer choir who've all had laryngectomies rehearsing their signature tune "Shout" by Tears for Fears

2. Close tilt down over the shoulder of charity founder Dr. Thomas Moors with choir in background

3. Close of concert pianist

4. Mid of choir

5. Close of pianist

6. Close of musical score

7. Wide of choir

8. Close of people in audience

9. Mid of audience

10. Wide pan from choir to audience applauding

11. UPSOUND: (English) Margaret Young, choir member, Shout at Cancer (shows wide of Margaret Young reading composition)

"It's gone, the box, the vocal chords, they took it all away. If I am mid sentence and I stop, it's not by choice. So I'll ask you again in a different way: can you hear my voice?"

12. Mid of audience applauding

13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Margaret Young, choir member, Shout at Cancer

"They kept saying I should join the choir, but I've never been able to sing, so they fooled my by saying, well you don't really have to sing, it's just speech therapy and well, they lied, because we do sing and that's how I've ended up in the choir. But it's nice to meet other people in the same position because you can become very isolated, it would be easy to become isolated."

14. Close of choir member pressing their speech valve

15. Close of Dr Thomas Moors directing choir with professional mezzo soprano La Verne Williams in the background

16. Close of speech valve on choir member

17. Tracking shot of Moors' hands

18. Various of choir members rehearsing "We Will Rock You" by Queen

19. Close tilt up of Andrew Beaumont pressing his speech valve to his face during singing

20. Mid rear view of choir during rehearsal

21. SOUNDBITE: (English) Andrew Beaumont, choir member, Shout at Cancer:

"It is absolutely essential, it stretches the tonal range one is able to create and apart from the social side, the sense of community and a sense of purpose. You know it's very important to have a sense of purpose in all things and this charity is unique in doing that for laryngectomees."

22. Close pan of audience (of surgeons and voice therapists) listening to La Verne Williams explain the use of vocal exercise

23. Close pan up of pianist playing "Brussels" by Jaques Brel accompanied by choir including Williams

24. Mid zoom out of Williams to reveal whole choir

25. Various of choristers singing accompaniment to Brussels

26. SOUNDBITE: (English) Evangelos Himonides, senior lecturer, University College London:

"There's nothing about all the psychosocial factors that are part of this game and anything that has to do with how we can foster the development of these people, how we can enable their engagement and how we can help them gain the confidence and the support structures and all the different understandings that need to be in place, so that they can return back to society, they can relinquish the stigma that is connected to this."

27. UPSOUND: (English) Jean Cooper, choir member, Shout at Cancer (reading her Testimonial during concert)

"I thought I would never talk again and I did, I thought I would never sing again and I have. Now I know I can do anything and I will, I am me again."

28. SOUNDBITE: (English) Dr. Thomas Moors, director, founder, Shout at Cancer:

"Up to thirty percent, forty percent of them get into social isolation because of the effect on their voice and psychological affects. Does it have an effect by them joining the choir, yes. As soon as they do it, after their first concert, but (also) going and preparing and meeting up and having the group effect and enjoying the music and the sound they are producing together, it has an amazingly uplifting effect on them and they are the best ambassadors for this project themselves, because they go out and they spread the word and they are so enthusiastic about it that sometimes I even have to ask them to shut up. (laughs)."

29. Various of choir singing their own composition for the Paralympians " Together we shout … Louder!"

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4061046

LEAD IN:

A choir without a voice is set to tour Europe to raise awareness of the plight of throat cancer patients.

The group, fitted with artificial voice boxes, call themselves "Shout at Cancer" because they're fighting back against the cancer which robbed them of their ability to speak.

STORY-LINE:

Thanks to this choir, these people are able to 'shout' again and they're aiming to 'let it all out' as loudly as they possibly can.

The words of the song by the 1980s pop band "Tears for Fears" is special to them and they've named themselves "Shout at Cancer" because of it.

Here the choir's been given the opportunity of performing at the Royal College of Surgeons in London.

They're all on a mission to make people, including doctors, aware of how isolating and difficult it is to have throat cancer.

While most physicians understand the trauma of having cancer, not not everyone understands what it's like to live after having your voice taken away.

Apart from a few specialist voices, everyone here has had an operation to have their larynx cut out and their windpipe brought through to a hole made in the front of their throats.

The laryngectomy is a complex operation which takes several hours.

Afterwards breathing is never the same again.

Patients have to master the technique of using a valve which becomes a permanent reminder of the cancer.

To speak, patients have to draw air through the hole in their windpipe and use the valve to trap the air into the mouth.

This allows them to manipulate the air to form what doctors call a 'valve voice'.

Margaret Young discovered she had thyroid cancer over seven years ago, she thought it had been treated, but it spread and before Christmas two years ago she discovered it had metasticised.

It would not have occurred to Young to join a choir before her cancer, but she was persuaded to do it by a speech therapist who'd heard about "Shout at Cancer".

She remembers: "They kept saying I should join the choir, but I've never been able to sing, so they fooled me by saying, well you don't really have to sing, it's just speech therapy and well, they lied, because we do sing and that's how I've ended up in the choir. But it's nice to meet other people in the same position because you can become very isolated, it would be easy to become isolated."

Andrew Beaumont was among the first members of the choir.

He, like Young, had his voice box removed when his cancer spread.

Beaumont is a vigorous advocate for the charity: "It is absolutely essential, it stretches the tonal range one is able to create and apart from the social side, the sense of community and a sense of purpose. You know it's very important to have a sense of purpose in all things and this charity is unique in doing that for laryngectomees."

Shout at Cancer is also a charity which helps to fund the choir.

Thomas Moors is the co-founder and one of an array of medical experts from scientists, voice therapists, musicians and surgeons who are raising money to spearhead new research.

They want a scientific enquiry into how music therapy can be used aid voice exercises for people who have had laryngectomies and examine how it can be used to ensure they're not isolated by the rest of society.

Although there are published studies physical problems experienced by laryngectomees, there is little research on their their emotional welfare or the psychosocial implications of the operation.

An additional problem is that most laryngectomees are nearing retirement which means they are more easily isolated.

Evangelos Himonides from University College London is among the scientists aiming to use music as a tool to help survivors of throat cancer.

"There's nothing about all the psychosocial factors that are part of this game and anything that is to do with how we can foster the development of these people, how we can enable their engagement and how we can help them gain the confidence and the support structures and all the different understandings that need to be in place, so that they can return back to society, they can relinquish the stigma that is connected to this."

The charity says there is simply not enough research, or progress into using new technologies because the number of laryngectomies each year are relatively few.

Here in the UK there are fewer than 1,800 operations a year according to "Shout at Cancer".

During the concert, choir member Jean Cooper reads her testimonial: "I thought I would never talk again and I did, I thought I would never sing again and I have. Now I know I can do anything and I will, I am me again."

Though the sentiment is personal, her experience is shared by the rest of the choir.

As well as conducting, Dr. Thomas Moors is the choir's director and cofounder of Shout at Cancer.

He is hoping the choir will make people sit up and understand the needs of people surviving throat cancer - better social support, better voice training services and even research into better technology.

Moors says: "Up to thirty percent, forty percent of them get into social isolation because of the effect on their voice and psychological affects. Does it have an effect by them joining the choir, yes. As soon as they do it, after their first concert, but (also) going and preparing and meeting up and having the group effect and enjoying the music and the sound they are producing together, it has an amazingly uplifting effect on them and they are the best ambassadors for this project themselves, because they go out and they spread the word and they are so enthusiastic about it that sometimes I even have to ask them to shut up. (laughs)."

As well as planning a number of Christmas concerts, next spring the choir will travel Brussels and Barcelona to spread their message.

Music/video/performance rights must be cleared

London, UK - 5 October 2016

1. Mid of Shout at Cancer choir who've all had laryngectomies rehearsing their signature tune "Shout" by Tears for Fears

2. Close tilt down over the shoulder of charity founder Dr. Thomas Moors with choir in background

3. Close of concert pianist

4. Mid of choir

5. Close of pianist

6. Close of musical score

7. Wide of choir

8. Close of people in audience

9. Mid of audience

10. Wide pan from choir to audience applauding

11. UPSOUND: (English) Margaret Young, choir member, Shout at Cancer (shows wide of Margaret Young reading composition)

"It's gone, the box, the vocal chords, they took it all away. If I am mid sentence and I stop, it's not by choice. So I'll ask you again in a different way: can you hear my voice?"

12. Mid of audience applauding

13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Margaret Young, choir member, Shout at Cancer

"They kept saying I should join the choir, but I've never been able to sing, so they fooled my by saying, well you don't really have to sing, it's just speech therapy and well, they lied, because we do sing and that's how I've ended up in the choir. But it's nice to meet other people in the same position because you can become very isolated, it would be easy to become isolated."

14. Close of choir member pressing their speech valve

15. Close of Dr Thomas Moors directing choir with professional mezzo soprano La Verne Williams in the background

16. Close of speech valve on choir member

17. Tracking shot of Moors' hands

18. Various of choir members rehearsing "We Will Rock You" by Queen

19. Close tilt up of Andrew Beaumont pressing his speech valve to his face during singing

20. Mid rear view of choir during rehearsal

21. SOUNDBITE: (English) Andrew Beaumont, choir member, Shout at Cancer:

"It is absolutely essential, it stretches the tonal range one is able to create and apart from the social side, the sense of community and a sense of purpose. You know it's very important to have a sense of purpose in all things and this charity is unique in doing that for laryngectomees."

22. Close pan of audience (of surgeons and voice therapists) listening to La Verne Williams explain the use of vocal exercise

23. Close pan up of pianist playing "Brussels" by Jaques Brel accompanied by choir including Williams

24. Mid zoom out of Williams to reveal whole choir

25. Various of choristers singing accompaniment to Brussels

26. SOUNDBITE: (English) Evangelos Himonides, senior lecturer, University College London:

"There's nothing about all the psychosocial factors that are part of this game and anything that has to do with how we can foster the development of these people, how we can enable their engagement and how we can help them gain the confidence and the support structures and all the different understandings that need to be in place, so that they can return back to society, they can relinquish the stigma that is connected to this."

27. UPSOUND: (English) Jean Cooper, choir member, Shout at Cancer (reading her Testimonial during concert)

"I thought I would never talk again and I did, I thought I would never sing again and I have. Now I know I can do anything and I will, I am me again."

28. SOUNDBITE: (English) Dr. Thomas Moors, director, founder, Shout at Cancer:

"Up to thirty percent, forty percent of them get into social isolation because of the effect on their voice and psychological affects. Does it have an effect by them joining the choir, yes. As soon as they do it, after their first concert, but (also) going and preparing and meeting up and having the group effect and enjoying the music and the sound they are producing together, it has an amazingly uplifting effect on them and they are the best ambassadors for this project themselves, because they go out and they spread the word and they are so enthusiastic about it that sometimes I even have to ask them to shut up. (laughs)."

29. Various of choir singing their own composition for the Paralympians " Together we shout … Louder!"

SHOTLIST

POOL

1. Wide pan of construction site at ground zero (former site of World Trade Centre)

2. Family members walking down ramp to World Trade Centre site and pool

3. Family members and others at pool writing messages and leaving flowers

4. Police officers reading names of victims

5. Pull out from woman holding photo of young man

6. Medium shot woman walking down ramp with flower and flag

7. Close up girl crying holding photo

8. Wide shot flag on building near Ground Zero

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael Bloomberg, New York City mayor:

"On this anniversary day, we are guided by these words: 'Sadness flies on the wings of the morning and out of the heart of darkness comes the light.'"

AP TELEVISION

10. Pan from people looking through fence around Ground Zero to people crying

11. Pan from flowers to man draped in US flag standing at fence

12. Wide shot family members walking

13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Annette Vukosa, lost her husband Alfred Vukosa:

"We're still grieving. It still feels like September 12th. "

14. Pan of family members leaving ceremony carrying flowers

15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Jeffery M. Taormina, lost his brother Dennis Taormina:

"It seemed like there was less people, which is kind of disheartening because I don't want anybody to forget about it. I want it to stay in American's minds, but having it in the park wasn't as bad as I thought it was going be. It was actually pretty nice."

16. Pan from FDNY (New York Fire Department) patch to balloon on fence

17. SOUNDBITE (English) Jose Rivera, lost his uncle:

"I think that it's very sad just to see so many people have lost someone that you love. And then when I saw the site, that made me cry, to see how deep that hole was. And people was actually buried under it. So you know you can't find no body in there. It's sad. Too many people died."

18. Pull out from hole in fence around Ground Zero

STORYLINE:

Relatives of World Trade Centre victims assembled at a park in the lower Manhattan area of New York city on Tuesday to mark the sixth anniversary of the September 11 attacks, with grey skies and rain providing a grim backdrop to the first ceremony not held at Ground Zero.

The site of the twin towers was not used because of ongoing construction there.

The decision to hold the ceremony at the park prompted some families to skip this year's memorial, which was also the first time the commemoration has been held on a Tuesday, the day the attacks occurred in 2001.

A choir sang, bagpipers and other musicians played, first responders read the names of the 2,750 victims, and city and state leaders, past and present, gave brief statements.

There were four moments of silence marked by a fire official ringing a bell.

They coincided with the moments when the planes hit each of the twin towers, and then the moments when the two towers collapsed.

Once again, the US city paused to listen as the names of the victims were read in a familiar but moving litany.

Although the ceremony was held in the park, family members had won the right to walk into the pit at Ground Zero to remember those who died in the fiery rubble of the collapsed 110-story towers.

They plucked roses from three buckets at the top of the ramp and marched slowly down to a circular pool of water.

Inside the pool, two smaller 6-foot square pools represented the trade centre as family members tossed flowers into the water or wrote messages on its wooden railing.

The Brooklyn Youth Chorus closed the ceremony by singing "Bridge over troubled water," a Simon and Garfunkel song, and Mayor Michael Bloomberg quoted French dramatist Jean Giraudoux, saying: "On this anniversary day, we are guided by these words: 'Sadness flies on the wings of the morning and out of the heart of darkness comes the light.'"

Outside the site, nearby, many others gathered to commemorate the event.

Even after six years, the pain of that morning lingered for many.

Annette Vukosa, who lost her husband Alfred Vukosa, said she is still grieving.

"It still feels like September 12th," she said.

Jeffery M. Taormina, whose brother, Dennis Taormina, was killed, said he liked the ceremony, even if there may have been fewer people than last year.

"It seemed like there was less people, which is kind of disheartening because I don't want anybody to forget about it," Taormina said.

Jose Rivera, whose uncle was killed, said he cried when he saw the site.

"I think that it's very sad just to see so many people have lost someone that you love," he said.

"And then we I saw the site, that made me cry, to see how deep that hole was. And people was actually buried in there. So you know you can't find no body in there. It's sad. Too many people died," he added.

For the first time this year, a victim who did not die at the trade centre was recognised -- the city added the name of an attorney who died of lung disease five months later to its official victims' list this year.

Many of the first responders have become sick, or died themselves, of respiratory problems and cancers they blame on exposure to trade centre dust.

SHOTLIST (including transcript):-

AP Entertainment

London, 2 October 2012

1. Wide shot entrance of Royal Albert Hall

2. Mid shot Anthony Hopkins poses for photographs with Andre Rieu

3. Tilt up ceremony host Myleene Klass

4. Mid shot Russell Watson

5. Mid shot Anthony Hopkins and Andre Rieu walk up red carpet

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Anthony Hopkins, actor:

"I play the piano, I'm not an expert, not a classical musician or anything, but I love improvising and writing music and I wrote this waltz in 1964, many, many years ago, almost 50 years ago. And, I've written lots of other music but I've never orchestrated it and I orchestrated various pieces and I sent it to Andre (Rieu) - my wife did, actually - and I got a phone call from him when I was in Mexico City doing publicity for a movie and he played it to me, made a recording with his orchestra and I heard it over the phone. I couldn't believe it. Then we went to Maastricht, Vienna last year, July, then later Maastricht where he played the waltz, to 8 thousand people I believe."

Andre Rieu: "10 thousand."

Anthony Hopkins: "10 thousand people."

(Reporter: What was your initial reaction when you first went through the music?)

Andre Rieu: "So I tell you every day people ask me to play their waltzes and until now I prefer the big waltzes by the big maestro Johann Strauss but then this waltz, this man called me and when Anthony Hopkins calls you, you 'oh yes of course I'm very interested' and then I was sent the score and immediately, you know when you play music you hear it, if it touches your heart or not, and this touched my heart immediately and we made a first draft and he liked it so I was very honored."

(Reporter: Will you be collaborating again?)

Anthony Hopkins: "I don't know, life's a dream."

Andre Rieu: "Who knows."

7. Mid shot Russell Watson

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Russell Watson, recording artist - on his nomination for Album of the Year for "Anthems":

"In all fairness this one for me isn't really about winning or losing an award, it's about the fact that it's been 10 years since I was here and it's about the struggle that I've had to come through to get back to this point and get back in the Classical BRITs and it's just a delight and a thrill to be here."

9. Wide shot Russell Watson jokes with reporter

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Russell Watson, recording artist - on which of the performances scheduled for the evening his is looking forward to:

"Well obviously Andrea Boccelli's got an absolutely sublime voice so I'm looking forward to him, I know Gary's doing a little stint with The Military Wives, so I think that'll be super."

11. Mid shot choir master Gareth Malone with members of choir The Military Wives Eden Burrell and Maria Dudley

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Gareth Malone, choir master: "We've got a big performance to do at the end of the night which is sort of what we're all focused on, and then there's a small matter of being nominated for best single, which would be really lovely. It's great to be here celebrating what choirs have achieved in the last year. I think in the last - 5, 10 years ago I don't think anyone would have put money on a choir getting to number one, and we've done that and that's testament to these ladies' efforts."

(Reporter: How confident are you feeling about the actual award?)

SOUNDBITE (English) Eden Burrell, The Military Wives: "To be honest, just being here is amazing, so whether we win or not, we've already achieved so much for so many charities."

Gareth Malone: "You're like a politician!"

Eden Burrell: "Sorry"

Gareth Malone: "That was brilliant, textbook answer. Yeah I'm really excited, I'm hopeful, I'm hopeful."

13. Mid shot Joe McElderry

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Joe McElderry, recording artist

"Bocelli's singing as well that will be pretty cool. And you know, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Gary Barlow, they're all - The Military Wives, that's going to be a really cool thing to see. I always just like events that celebrate music, you know whether it's the BRITs or the Classic BRITs, any music ceremony where it brings loads of artists together and it's supportive and it puts a positive - you know there's something a lot of negativity in this industry. It's nice to see all the positively filled in this room tonight."

15. Mid shot Andrea Bocelli arrives

16. SOUNDBITE (English) Andrea Bocelli, recording artist: "It's a big honor because when you receive some award like this which means that people love you, so it's a big - which is the most important thing."

17. Wide shot Anthony Hopkins poses for photographers, goes into Royal Albert Hall

18. Wide shot exterior Royal Albert Hall

+++CLIENTS PLEASE NOTE: AWARD RESULTS INFORMATION IS EMARGOED TIL 2100 GMT

ANTHONY HOPKINS JOINS STARS OF CLASSICAL MUSIC AT CLASSIC BRIT AWARDS

Hollywood star Sir Anthony Hopkins can add another accolade to his long list of honors - he has contributed to the winning Album of the Year, at the Classic BRIT Awards 2012.

The actor joined classical music stars including Andre Rieu, Andrea Bocelli and Russell Watson in London, Tuesday (2 OCT.), for the awards ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall.

Fans of Hopkin's films may be less familiar with his musical work - but he composed the title track of Rieu's winning album "And the Waltz Goes On."

"The Silence of the Lambs" star arrived on the red carpet with his violinist friend, and explained how he came to contribute to the album.

"I play the piano, I'm not an expert, not a classical musician or anything, but I love improvising and writing music and I wrote this waltz in 1964, many, many years ago, almost 50 years ago," said Hopkins. "And, I've written lots of other music but I've never orchestrated it and I orchestrated various pieces and I sent it to Andre - my wife did, actually - and I got a phone call from him when I was in Mexico City doing publicity for a movie and he played it to me, made a recording with his orchestra and I heard it over the phone. I couldn't believe it."

"Every day people ask me to play their waltzes and until now I prefer the big waltzes by the big maestro Johann Strauss," added Rieu, " but then this waltz, this man called me and when Anthony Hopkins calls you, you 'Oh yes of course I'm very interested' and then I was sent the score and immediately, you know when you play music you hear it, if it touches your heart or not, and this touched my heart immediately and we made a first draft and he liked it so I was very honored."

"And the Waltz Goes On" beat out nominees including Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and four times Classic BRIT winner Russell Watson.

Watson, a brain cancer survivor, arrived ready to perform during the ceremony, after having to pull out of last year's event just the night before, due to ill health.

The English tenor was in philosophical mood on the red carpet about whether his 8th Classic BRIT nomination would lead to a prize.

"In all fairness this one for me isn't really about winning or losing an award, it's about the fact that it's been 10 years since I was here and it's about the struggle that I've had to come through to get back to this point and get back in the Classical BRITs and it's just a delight and a thrill to be here."

Watson was also eager to watch his fellow performers, who included Bocelli, and "Sing" composers Gary Barlow and Andrew Lloyd Webber.

The pair played two grand pianos to accompany The Military Wives choir, who sang the jubilee anthem.

Choir master Gareth Malone arrived with Military Wives members Eden Burrell and Maria Dudley, eager to perform.

"We've got a big performance to do at the end of the night which is sort of what we're all focused on," said Malone,"and then there's a small matter of being nominated for best single, which would be really lovely."

The choir went on to win the award for Single of the Year, for "Wherever You Are"

"It's great to be here celebrating what choirs have achieved in the last year," Malone said before the ceremony. "I think in the last - 5, 10 years ago I don't think anyone would have put money on a choir getting to number one, and we've done that and that's testament to these ladies' efforts."

"To be honest, just being here is amazing, so whether we win or not, we've already achieved so much for so many charities," agreed Burrell.

Andrea Bocelli, who arrived shortly before the ceremony began, had previously been announced as International Artist of the Year.

Classical music's biggest selling solo artist, who has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, arrived still thrilled to be getting tributes.

"It's a big honor because when you receive some award like this which means that people love you, so it's a big - which is the most important thing," said Bocelli.

Also previously announced, Oscar winning Hollywood composer John Williams was given a Lifetime Achievement award, to honor his iconic scores including "Jaws," "ET The Extra Terrestrial," "Indiana Jones," "Harry Potter" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind."

Williams was also named best composer for "War Horse" and "The Adventures of TinTin."