The Civil War by LearnCivilWarHistory.com

Ashokan Farewell

Chances are, you first heard Ashokan Farewell during The Civil War eleven-hour 1990 miniseries on PBS.

The Ashokan Farewell music served as the theme for The Civil War by Ken Burns. It is hauntingly unforgettable. The song is heard 25 times during the miniseries and is the background music for the reading of the Sullivan Ballou letter. Ashokan Farewell was a perfect match for the story and scenes of The Civil War miniseries.

With music, Ashokan Farewell puts the sadness of the Civil War into our hearts, in a way all today can understand and feel.

Contrary to common thought, Ashokan Farewell is not music from the Civil War era. Instead, it is from our modern times and is the only music in The Civil War miniseries not from the 19th century. It’s name comes from a village in the New York Catskill Region, named Ashokan. The Ashokan Reservoir now covers most of this village. Jay Ungar composed Ashokan Farewell in 1982. It features a solo violin at the beginning, and later a guitar accompanies. Ungar wrote Ashokan Farewell in the style of a Scottish lament.

Barnes&Noble: Ashokan Farewell (The Civil War Soundtrack)

In the below video, Jay Ungar explains the creation of Ashokan Farewell. Ungar is joined by his wife Molly Mason, for a performance of Ashokan Farewell. I’ll bet you’ll play this video and listen to the wonderful music more than once, I know I have! Enjoy.

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