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Veteran actor Anthony Hopkins has ventured into the classical music world, releasing his debut single "Bracken Road" after signing a record deal with Decca Classics. The single is a prelude to his upcoming album, "Life is a Dream," a collection of orchestral compositions crafted over the past six decades.

Decca Classics described the album as revealing a composer whose music mirrors the emotional depth and storytelling that define his celebrated screen career. Hopkins, an 88-year-old Welsh-born actor renowned for his Academy Award-winning roles, has a lifelong connection to music, having learned piano at the age of four and composing for local plays as a teenager.

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Music was my first desire, my first wish. I’ve been composing music all my life. Some of these pieces have lived with me for decades and I still find myself returning to them.

"Music was my first desire, my first wish," Hopkins stated. "I’ve been composing music all my life. Some of these pieces have lived with me for decades and I still find myself returning to them." The album, set for release on August 21, features works inspired by his childhood, loved ones, and his native South Wales.

The album includes collaborations with Grammy Award-winning conductor Gustavo Dudamel and the Philharmonia Orchestra. Hopkins expressed deep gratitude to Dudamel, noting that the conductor's artistry transformed each note with profound meaning. "Bracken Road" itself was composed in 1963, inspired by the landscape near his childhood home, while other tracks like "My Fatherland" also pay tribute to Wales.

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It has been a true privilege to collaborate with the distinguished Philharmonia Orchestra and the virtuoso soloists, cellist Gregorio Nieto and classical pianist Sergio Tiempo. My deepest gratitude and respect go to Maestro Gustavo Dudamel, whose artistry is an integral part of this musical journey. With the graceful precision of his baton, he transformed each note with profound and indelible meaning, creating a pictorial landscape that invites the listener to feel and imagine something uniquely personal.