Two-time Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins released his first classical music single on Friday (July 10) after signing a record deal as a composer.

"Bracken Road" features on his upcoming "Life is a Dream" album, a collection of orchestral works written over six decades, "revealing a composer whose music shares the same emotional depth and storytelling that define his screen career", label Decca Classics said.

The 88-year-old Welsh-born actor, who won Academy Awards for his performances in "The Silence of the Lambs" and "The Father", learned to play the piano at the age of four and went on to compose music for local plays as a teenager in the 1950s.

"Music was my first desire, my first wish," Hopkins said in a statement. "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."

"Life is a Dream", which is released on August 21, features works Hopkins wrote during different periods of his life that were inspired by his childhood, loved ones and his native south Wales.

It is performed by Grammy Award-winning conductor Gustavo Dudamel and the Philharmonia Orchestra.

"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," Hopkins said.

"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."

Inspired by the landscape around his childhood home, Hopkins composed "Bracken Road" in 1963 when he was a young actor at the Liverpool Playhouse theatre, improvising on a piano before rehearsals. Another track "My Fatherland", also pays tribute to Wales, while other pieces draw on loved ones and "the cinema that first caught his imagination", Decca Classics said.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

Anthony Hopkins signs record deal at 88 and drops new single 'Bracken Road'

VIDEO SHOWS: CLIP OF ACTOR AND COMPOSER ANTHONY HOPKINS' VIDEO FOR CLASSICAL MUSIC ALBUM "LIFE IS A DREAM"/ STILL IMAGES OF HOPKINS DURING RECORDING SESSIONS/ "LIFE IS A DREAM" ALBUM ARTWORK/ ARCHIVE OF HOPKINS

RESENDING WITH SHOTLIST AND SCRIPT.

SHOWS: VARIOUS FILMING LOCATIONS (RECENT) (DECCA CLASSICS – Broadcast: Must courtesy Decca Classics. Editorial news use only, no commercial use. Please check with the applicable collecting society or relevant rights holders in your territory regarding clearance of any sound recordings. No archive, no resales. Digital: Must courtesy Decca Classics. Editorial news use only, no commercial use. Please check with the applicable collecting society or relevant rights holders in your territory regarding clearance of any sound recordings. No monetisation on social platforms. No archive, no resales)

1. CLIP OF ACTOR AND COMPOSER ANTHONY HOPKINS’ “LIFE IS A DREAM" VIDEO

UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION (RECENT) (DECCA CLASSICS/CHARLIE GRAY – Must courtesy Charlie Gray. Editorial news use only, no archive and no resales) (MUTE)

2. THREE STILL IMAGES OF HOPKINS DURING RECORDING SESSIONS

UNIDENTIFIED LOCATION (RECENT) (DECCA CLASSICS – Must courtesy Decca Classics. Editorial news use only, no archive and no resales) (MUTE)

3. STILL IMAGE OF HOPKINS' “LIFE IS A DREAM” ALBUM ARTWORK

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (ARCHIVE - MARCH 27, 2022) (REUTERS – Access all)

***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY***

4. VARIOUS OF HOPKINS AND WIFE, ACTOR STELLA ARROYAVE ARRIVING AND POSING AT VANITY FAIR OSCAR PARTY

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (ARCHIVE - MAY 23, 2017) (REUTERS – Access all)

5. HOPKINS SPEAKING AT PODIUM AT TCL CHINESE THEATRE TO HONOUR DIRECTOR MICHAEL BAY

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (ARCHIVE - NOVEMBER 4, 2013) (REUTERS – Access all)

6. VARIOUS OF HOPKINS TALKING TO REPORTERS AT THE PREMIERE OF "THOR: THE DARK WORLD"

LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (ARCHIVE – DECEMBER 9, 2012) (REUTERS – Access all)

7. HOPKINS AND ARROYAVE WALKING DOWN RED CARPET AT “HITCHCOCK” PREMIERE

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (ARCHIVE - MARCH 27, 2022) (REUTERS – Access all) (MUTE)

8. STILL IMAGE OF HOPKINS POSING FOR PICTURES AT VANITY FAIR OSCAR PARTY

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (ARCHIVE - MARCH 27, 2022) (REUTERS – Access all) (MUTE)

9. STILL IMAGE OF HOPKINS PRESENTING THE OSCAR FOR BEST ACTRESS AT THE 94TH ACADEMY AWARDS