After the pair did their song "Grammys," Drake left the Atlanta MC to lead his own brief set, which included a cameo by L.A.'s Ty Dolla Sign in "Blasé" and a rendition of "March Madness" accompanied by tense police imagery on a large video screen.
One rendition of "Maggie May" later, her story began.
More patriotism, albeit of a subtler variety, came from Alan Jackson, who sang a beautifully stripped-down rendition of his Sept. 11-inspired "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)" in remembrance of the victims of 1995's Oklahoma City bombing.
The range is broad, tapping into many facets of heroineship, power, and feminine mystique, from Bia Sanchez's shapeshifting animation of Frida Kahlo, to Matea Radic's trippy rendition of Miranda July.
Mr Powell's stirring rendition of "Di Provenza il mar" proved the highlight of the afternoon.
The concert began with a rousing rendition of the "Triumphal March" from Verdi's "Aida".
Kenneth W. Megan, shared the second half of the program, beginning with a rousing rendition of a Sousa march, "The Glory of the Yankee Navy".
The piano player, if he is any sort of human being, will have noticed this ungracious scene and will strike out a sympathetic and teary-eyed rendition of "The Wedding March".
They combine tributes to Derbyshire (a sinister rendition of her robots' march, Ziwzih Ziwzih OO-OO-OO) and their own classic compositions with brand new pieces written by Limb, Howell and Ayres based on original RWS themes.
There were strong turns by Sugarland, which won Vocal Duo of the Year for the fourth year running — the closest this year's awards came to predictability — Kenny Chesney on his football memoir "The Boys of Fall," and Ms. Swift, with a purposefully low-key rendition of "Back to December," during which she never got up from behind her piano.
