AUCKLAND, Today: Woolworths has teamed up with dentsu to give the iconic ‘Hot Cross Buns’ tune a full orchestral treatment, marking its biggest hot cross bun range yet.
To make it happen, dentsu creative partnered with the Auckland Symphony Orchestra, turning the familiar three-note recorder melody into a cinematic new arrangement.
Composer Ryan Youens re-scored the track, with 32 ASO musicians helping bring the well-known tune to life on a much bigger scale.
Youens, known for his work as arranger for the Synthony Festival and as an orchestrator on The Hobbit film series said “Taking this timeless piece, I’ve reimagined it into an epic orchestral arrangement.
“It’s a journey from the familiar simplicity of a nursery rhyme to a grand, symphonic expression.”
The campaign celebrates Woolworths’ widest hot cross bun range to date, from the traditional favourite to more indulgent options such as Cinnabon.
Media, handled by Dentsu media, puts audio at the centre of the campaign, with activity across digital and linear radio, plus Spotify and social.
The campaign also extends into the real world, with an audio and video-enabled digital truck touring key locations and brand ambassadors sampling hot cross buns on the ground.
“It’s a journey from the familiar simplicity of a nursery rhyme to a grand, symphonic expression.” – Ryan Youens
Sam Gujer, Senior Marketing Manager, Fresh & Own Brand at Woolworths, said “At Woolworths, we take the familiar and make it epic through innovation and collaboration, and that is exactly what we’ve done here, turning the humble Hot Cross Buns tune into a full orchestral performance with the ASO.”
Tash Pinker, Account Director at dentsu creative, added “Woolworths has been dedicated to making their hot cross buns epic, so it was great to partner with the ASO to celebrate them and take the idea to the next level.”
The idea came from childhood memories shared by dentsu creative’s David Gillard-Allen and Jerome Toh.
They said: “When we were first briefed, we realised our strongest memory of ‘Hot Cross Buns’ wasn’t the food, but the song that was drilled into our heads when learning the recorder in primary school.”
Mike Felix, Chief Creative Officer at dentsu creative, added, “Fun fact: the recorder used for the initial sound recording was my actual recorder from primary school when I learned ‘Hot Cross Buns’ 36 years ago.”
Nicola Couch, Musician / President of the Auckland Symphony Orchestra Inc. said, “There is a wonderful magic in the contrast between a child’s rendition of Hot Cross Buns on the recorder and the epic sounds of a symphony orchestra playing the same tune.”
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