Classic BRIT Awards 2012 - nominations live blog

6 September 2012, 12:00 | Updated: 15 December 2016, 11:50

Get behind the scenes updates from one of the biggest nights in classical music, the Classic BRIT Awards 2012 launch. Join us for up-to-the-minute announcements as they happen - before the winners are announced in October.

Welcome to the Classic FM live blog! We'll be giving you live updates from the Classic BRIT Awards 2012 launch event at the Savoy Hotel in London. Keep refreshing the page to get our latest updates.

Be sure to join us here from 6.30pm for the latest news as we celebrate the achievements of this year's best classical artitsts.

7.19pm And it's all over! Barry McCann wishes the audience goodnight. "We look forward to welcoming you all at the Royal Albert Hall. Thank you, goodnight."

7.18pm What a beautiful voice, the whole audience are very impressed - there's a lot of well-deserved applause.

7.15pm "Would you please welcome the wonderfully talented (and, also, incredibly good looking!) Noah Stewart!" He's on stage now, singing 'Deep River'.

7.12pm Margherita thanks all the classical artists. "On behalf of all the team at Classic FM, if I could thank everyone in the room for giving the station such great music to play over the past 20 years. A massive thank you to you for making it possible."

7.11pm Classic FM have been honoured with our very own Classical BRIT Award! Darren Henley is on stage to collect the award, celebrating 20 years of the world's greatest music.

7.08pm

International Artist of the Year

Andrea Bocelli

Lifetime Achievement

John Williams

7.06pm

Classic FM Album of the Year

  • André Rieu
    And The Waltz Goes On
    Decca
  • Andrea Bocelli
    Concerto — One Night In Central Park
    Decca
  • Band Of HM Royal Marines
    Summon The Heroes
    Decca
  • Band Of The Coldstream Guards
    Pride Of The Nation
    Decca
  • Craig Ogden
    Summertime
    Classic FM
  • Hayley Westenra
    Paradiso
    Decca
  • Laura Wright
    The Last Rose
    Decca
  • Miloš Karadaglić
    The Guitar
    Deutsche Grammophon
  • Noah Stewart
    Noah
    Decca
  • Russell Watson
    Anthems
    Sony Classical

7.05pm

Critics' Award

  • Berlin Philharmonic/Rattle
    Bruckner Symphony No.9
    EMI Classics
  • Benjamin Grosvenor
    Chopin/Liszt/Ravel
    Decca
  • BBC Symphony Orchestra/Belohlavek
    Martinu: The 6 Symphonies
    Onyx

7.04pm

Classic BRITs Single of the Year

  • Adiemus
    Adiemus
    Virgin
  • Royal Choral Society, BBC Concert Orchestra/Wordsworth
    Jerusalem
    Decca
  • Della Jones, Royal Choral Society, BBC Concert Orchestra/Wordsworth
    Rule Britannia
    Universal Classics
  • Ennio Morricone
    Gabriel's Oboe (The Mission — OST)
    EMI Music
  • Hans Zimmer
    Time (Inception — OST)
    Warner Music
  • Klaus Badelt
    He's a Pirate (Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse Of The Black Pearl — OST)
    Walt Disney Records/EMI Records
  • London Philharmonic Orchestra/Parry
    Adagio for Strings (Barber)
    X5
  • Luciano Pavarotti
    Nessun Dorma
    Decca
  • Ludovico Einaudi
    I Giorni
    Decca
  • Military Wives/Gareth Malone
    Wherever You Are
    Decca

7.03pm

Composer

  • Ennio Morricone
    Paradiso
    Decca
  • John Williams
    War Horse/The Adventures Of TinTin
    Sony Classical
  • Paul Mealor
    A Tender Light
    Decca

7.02pm

Mastercard's Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award

  • Benjamin Grosvenor
    Benjamin Grosvenor Plays Chopin, Liszt & Ravel
    Decca
  • Miloš Karadaglić
    Latino
    Deutsche Grammophon
  • Noah Stewart
    Noah
    Decca

7.00pm

Male Artist:

  • Andrea Bocelli
    Concerto — One Night In Central Park
    Decca
  • Lang Lang
    Liszt — My Piano Hero
    Sony Classical
  • Vasily Petrenko
    Shostakovich/Symphony No. 1 & 3
    Shostakovich/Symphony No. 6 & 12
    Shostakovich/Symphony No. 2 & 15
    Naxos
    Rachmaninov/Piano Concertos 1 & 4
    Avie
    Rachmaninov/Symphony No. 3
    EMI Classics

6.58pm The nominations are in!

Female Artist:

  • Alison Balsom
    Seraph
    EMI Classics
  • Joyce DiDonato
    Diva Divo — Opera Arias
    Virgin Classics
  • Nicola Benedetti
    Italia
    Decca

6.56pm You can hear a pin drop here - what a beautiful performance.

6.50pm Amy Dickson's taken to the stage to perform Chopin's Nocturne No. 2 on the saxophone. Beautiful.

6.48pm Apparently this year "there will also be a surprise and unique collaboration performance..." - but it's all top secret for the time being!

6.45pm "One of the most recognisable and best-loved voices on British radio" - Margherita's on the stage to announce the nominations. "It's going to be a really, really special show this year."

6.40pm We're reminiscing about last year's Classic BRITs ceremony with a video. Music, photos, performances - it's all coming back to us! Alfie Boe's on the screen, singing 'One Day More', as we speak.

6.35pm Amore are singing on stage now. Fantastic!

6.30pm The lights are down low, the classical artists are all assembled - and we're ready to start! Drum roll please...

6.29pm  A beautiful performance of 'Happy Birthday' from Amore - in honour of our 20th birthday! What a treat, thank you.

6.26pm  And now it's Milos' turn to be interviewed. Have a look.

6.21pm Lucy's got Gareth Malone on the red carpet. "I always thought I would really miss the wives... but actually I've seen them at so many recent appearances!"

6.18pm Military Wives on the success of their single: "We can't get over it. We don't think we ever will."

6.15pm Milos is here! Looking unsurprisingly dapper in a silver jacket...

6.10pm Gareth Malone and Paul Mealor, both on the red carpet at once! Things are hotting up here at the Savoy.

6.05pm Laura's chin-wagging with our own Lucy Coward:"I got to meet the Queen a few times this year, so my feet haven't quite hit the ground yet!"

5.58pm And Laura Wright's on the red carpet in a long black dress. Lovely!

5.51pm Saxophonist Amy Dickson's here on the red carpet. And she's followed by Gareth Malone, who's just arrived in the building!

5.49pm "People are buying more classical albums than ever before, so it's a great time to be involved," said Margherita.

5.47pm Margherita Taylor's looking stunning on the red carpet - she's chatting to newsreader Lucy Coward.

5.42pm Amore are here! Classic FM's Lucy Coward is chatting to them on the red carpet.

5.33pm Anticipation is mounting, but we're being serenaded by some great classical tunes. At the moment it's Andrea Bocelli singing Schubert's 'Ave Maria'. Have a listen.

5.29pm One minute to go until some of the world's best classical artists arrive.

5.21pm Classic FM's Margherita Taylor has just arrived! She'll be on stage later this evening...

5pm We've just arrived at the Classic BRITS - and the Savoy Hotel is looking very pretty indeed!

More Classic FM Events

Classic FM’s Rising Stars with Julian Lloyd Webber