A pair of British musicians who died in an avalanche were described as a most "generous" couple by neighbours.
Michael and Dorothy Hall, both 53, lost their lives while walking in the Pyrenees on Wednesday.
They died after being knocked off a mountain path when a snow shelf fell on them on their first trip to the Pyrenees. Gendarmes are investigating the accident.
Michael Denton, 25, a neighbour said: "You could not wish to meet nicer people. They were the most generous, kind, levelled people who would do absolutely anything for anybody else."
The couple lived in Attwood Road, Didsbury, Manchester, for more than 26 years. Mr Hall was a violinist in the Halle Orchestra and his wife was a cellist who played with both the Halle and BBC Philharmonic. She also taught the cello.
The couple were staying in the Luz St Sauveur area of France.
Mr Denton said: "They had never been to the Pyrenees before. They were walking on a mountain path and a snow shelf has dropped and knocked them off. They fell."
He said Mr Hall was as "fit as a fiddle" and a serious climber who had ascended Mont Blanc. His wife loved walking and had raised "thousands" for the catholic charity Cafod and recently become involved in the Fair Trade movement.
Mr Denton said: "All the photographs in the house are of them in the mountains, of them skiing or walking. Every photograph had some sort of mountain backdrop."
A Foreign Office spokesman confirmed the couple had died in the Pyrenees after being struck by an avalanche.
Read More
MORE ABOUT