To commemorate the centenary of the burial of the Unknown Warrior in Westminster Abbey, London, Westminster City Council and TMW UNLIMITED have joined forces with the Military Wives Choirs to re-record “Abide with Me,” a hymn sung at the public funeral service in 1920.
The campaign shows the power of music bringing people together during difficult times and commemorates one of the most poignant centenaries of World War I.
Released digitally, the track is accompanied by this music video as well as a moving documentary following the Journey of the Unknown Warrior as told by the Military Wives Choirs. Both films carry the tagline, “Dedicated to all who have fallen in war and conflict. All who have come back, and all who have not.”
Created and recorded during lockdown, the production of the track became the journey itself–showing the power of music to bring people together during difficult times.
The campaign was produced by renowned musician, composer and producer, Sean Hargreaves and conducted by one of Britain’s most distinguished conductors, Hilary Davan Wetton.
70 members of the Choirs traveled from across the UK to record each vocal part individually due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Phil Rhodes, creative director at TMW UNLIMITED, said: “The campaign commemorates one of the most poignant centenaries of World War One: the burial of the Unknown Warrior. Over one million British and Commonwealth servicemen and women were killed in the war, and many were left in unmarked graves on the battlefields where they fell. Themes that were relevant in 1920–of strength through adversity, and togetherness in the face of great loss–are still relevant to us today, and we wanted these to underpin this tribute.”