The Military Wives Choir was formed by Gareth Malone at the Royal Marines Base Chivenor, as part of the fourth series of the BBC/Twenty Twenty television series ‘The Choir’, entitled ‘The Choir: Military Wives’.
The aim of the choir was to help the wives and girlfriends of servicemen currently deployed to Afghanistan to express themselves through song.
As the series progressed, Malone led the Chivenor group to perform locally, and then, alongside the choir formed at the Royal Citadel, Plymouth, at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and at Armed Forces Day celebrations in Plymouth.
The climax of the television series was their performance of ‘Wherever You Are’ at The Royal British Legion’s Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall on 12th November 2011, in the presence of HM The Queen.
The song was created by Paul Mealor from extracts of correspondence between the choir and their spouses in Afghanistan.
Following the series, the song ‘Wherever You Are’ was released as a single on 19th December 2011, and it became the 2011 UK Singles Chart Christmas number one.
The success of the television series and the Christmas single led the five established choirs being approached to contribute to an album. The album, entitled ‘In My Dreams’ after the lead single, was released in early March 2012, and went to top the album chart in the UK within a week, with £1 from each album sale going towards the Military Wives Choirs Foundation.
The foundation has the aim to support the founding of Military Wives’ choirs across the UK. Nicky Clarke, co-founder of The Military Wives Choir Foundation, whose original idea and dream to have a choir on every base was gaining momentum, wrote in her note on the album cover, “It is music which gives us strength, hope, courage, support, laughter and friendship, often when it is most needed”.
Military Wives Choirs continues to grow, and there are more than 67 choirs within the network, including Upavon Military Wives Choir, who are coming to serenade us at Melksham United Church at 3.00pm on Sunday 22nd March.
The hour’s performance will be followed by tea and cake for performers and audience. Programmes are £5 each available at the door, and any proceeds go to church funds.
Margaret Henry
