Ashokan Farewell

[JimLucas]

"Ashokan Farewell" was mentioned under another Topic in another subForum.

 

"Ashokan Farewell" is a fiddle tune.

I said that it works very nicely on the English, though, and promised to try it on the anglo.

 

I have now done so, and it works beautifully. I even found myself throwing in some harmony notes. And though I have the RH C# in both directions, I find that it works just fine if I restrict myself to either the push or pull C#.

 

I have also tried it on Crane duet, where -- of course(?) -- it's also quite comfortable, though it's necessary to cross to the left hand for a few of the low notes (those below middle C).

Similar story on the Maccann, though on most smaller Maccanns more of the melody has to be played in the left hand, since their lowest RH note is G above middle C.

And I find it also fits nicely on the Pitt-Taylor duet (a system where I'm still a novice), with only the low G missing from the right hand.

 

I guess this tune -- and actually quite a few others -- is well suited to just about any reasonable instrument.

[David Barnert]

A few moments ago, I was typing a message about the tune on the other thread thinking "this is really off topic, we really should start a topic on Ashokan Farewell." Then I hit "send." Then I saw this topic.

[Dan Madden]

There are a lot of waltzes in the American Fiddle tradition that work well on the English Concertina. Ashokan Farewell is definitely one, once you solve the problem with that lowest note.

 

In general, the popular fiddle contest waltzes seem to move to concertina well. Midnight on the Water, for example, is worth a try. It is often played in a cross tuning with a great deal of double bowing, and this can be duplicated on the concertina without much adjustment.

 

If you get to play with a fiddle player using double bowing on a slow tune, just duplicating the second string in their double bow and holding it as a drone until a cord change can make for an interesting accompaniment that fits the tradition. You can just keep this up as you turn it into a concertina tune.

[Sharron]

Ahh sugar puffs

 

I can't play my fiddle at the same time as the concertina......huffnpuffnbillyo

 

I am the only fiddle player in the house and I need another pair of hands to try this out.

 

Sharron

[dbowers]

"Ashokan Farewell" is indeed a really lovely tune. Does anyone klnow its history -- written by whom, when, etc?

[ldpaulson]

"Ashokan Farewell" is indeed a really lovely tune. Does anyone klnow its history -- written by whom, when, etc?

 

It does sound like an old tune. It is modern! This surpises a lot of people. Written by American Jay Ungar in the 1980s as a farewell/remebrance piece for students of the Ashokan folk camps he had taught in NY at during the summers. The tune was poularized by its use in the PBS documentary series The Civil War by Ken Burns. It is lovely.

 

Everything you wanted to know and more here.

 

Plus check out their new CD. I really like it bunches.

[JimLucas]

"Ashokan Farewell" is indeed a really lovely tune. Does anyone klnow its history -- written by whom, when, etc?

Oh, yes.

 

Since I know Jay Ungar, who wrote it, I started to write something here, but it quickly occurred to me that he might already have done a better job. Yep!

 

........Look here.

[JimLucas]

There are a lot of waltzes in the American Fiddle tradition that work well on the English Concertina.

Should be just about any of them, since the lowest note on the standard treble English is the same as that on a fiddle in standard tuning, while the top note is more than high enough for any traditional tune I've seen.

 

Ashokan Farewell is definitely one, once you solve the problem with that lowest note.

What problem with what note? Lowest note in the melody is G, and it's no problem at all on any of my English concertinas. (I have to take it down a couple of octaves on my contrabass, though, which has a top note of middle C. )

[Aquarussell]

I became interested in the English Concertina partly because of it's age. It is a Victorian instrument, and so could be used at American Civil War re-enactments.

 

The tune "Ashokan Farewell" may not be periode for the Civil War, but it is the only modern peice of music that re-encters seem to universally accept. And it's lovely. And it's a Waltz.

 

It had occured to me that music for fiddle and piano might also be used of Concertina and Accordion. Where should I look for music like that?

[JimLucas]

It had occured to me that music for fiddle and piano might also be used of Concertina and Accordion.  Where should I look for music like that?

Fiddle tunes transfer to English concertina much more readily than piano arrangements to accordion, but if it's a piano-and-fiddle arrangement of Ashokan Farewell you want, try here.

 

For other possibilities, CDSS (the Country Dance and Song Society) should have books not only of fiddle tunes, but also some with piano arrangements of dance tunes. I don't know if they have anything specifically for accordion, but you could ask. There are certainly some fine accordionists (and pianists, of course) among the contra dance bands.

[David Barnert]

All this talk of "Ashokan, Farewell," so I guess I might as well share the "tongue-in-cheek" lyrics I wrote about 5 years ago. I have sung them for Jay and he liked them. Some of the references are of the "you hadda be there" variety.

 

There's a campus in the woods

And it's owned by SUNY New Paltz

And high school kids go there to learn about trees.

In the summer when it's hot

Then they use it as a dance camp

Where Jay plays the fiddle and Michael boils peas.

 

There's a tune that Jay wrote

And everyone knows it.

The tune that I'm singing now.

On the last day of camp

When we're done packing

We waltz to it, then it's "Ashokan, Farewell."

Edited February 12, 2004 by David Barnert

[John Wild]

Another story I heard some time ago on the name:-

 

A soldier was called up for national service in the war. His mother drove him to the station, and watched the train leave. but all that time she showed no emotion and said not a word. After the train left, the soldier turned to the person standing next to him and said: "Well! That was a shockin' farewell!"

 

Sorry folks.

 

- John Wild

[JimLucas]

Another story I heard some time ago on the name:-

 

..... [...]

 

Sorry folks.

..... Ah, if only you were....

[Jim Besser]

Since we're on the subject of waltzes and Ungers...don't overlook the incredible and concertina-friendly waltzes of LARRY Unger (or is it Ungar? I can never remember; Jay spells it one way, Larry the other, I think).

 

Two particularly beautiful ones come to mind: Two Rivers and the incredible The Dancer, which can be heard on a Wild Asparagus CD, as well as Larry's own Uncle Gizmo. This waltz is a lot of fun on anglo, once you figure out where the Eb is.

[Aquarussell]

I have found music for The Dancer in The Waltz Book II

 

http://www.bfv.com/waltz/

 

And Ashoken Farewell in Book One. The sample page from book two looked very friendly, I must have some of those books.

 

Thank you for mentioning Larry Unger, his name led to some pretty interesting sources!

 

Russell Hedges