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My acoustic guitar duet arrangement of this beautiful Jay Ungar piece.. this has become a modern classic in the world of folk and bluegrass music and sounds especially beautiful with a fiddle player.

You'll find my sheet music for both the chords and the melody attached below, as well as a my reference recording and my chords-only backing track.

I know a lot of you came here from my jazz lessons, but do let me know down in the comments if you're interested in this type of music also as it's a huge passion of mine and I'd love to share more of it here with you guys too.

Comments

Colin Thores

Lovely playing thanks for this. Definitely include material like this in the future.

Jimmy Dodd

That’s gorgeous, Alex. I haven’t played my acoustic guitar in a while, but this is about to change that. Living in the foothills of the Appalachians in East Tennessee I’d love to hear more of this style of music.

MarkF

Hello Alex-this is great but to be honest (and selfishly) not for me because I am interested in chord melody or solo pieces mainly as I do not play in a band or with other guitarists. Happy for when those chord melody lessons come around and once in a while is just fine. I do pick up useful information in ALL your materials so don’t change a thing!

Jonathan Fowles

Yes, please keep this coming! Some of the melody reminds me of Duke Levine’s version of Wild Mountain Thyme, I guess there’s a strong Celtic - Appalachian connection…

Alex Farran Guitar

Thanks Colin.. seems a fair few people feel the same way which is nice to hear! I shall certainly be covering more of this style on the channel. I’m excited to bring more acoustic material to the proceedings!

Alex Farran Guitar

Thanks buddy, I’m glad to hear that! Man, I would love to visit that part of the country. I have a strong connection to this type of music 🙏🏻

Alex Farran Guitar

No worries Mark, I’m glad you always look for things to gain from the pieces even if they’re not your cup of tea!.. that’s how it should be.. harvesting tunes for their gold 👌🏻🤩 For example that voicing I use for D7/F# in the accompaniment for this tune is insanely useful for jazz chord melody.. as is the bass note walk down in the middle of the piece 👌🏻

GerryOL

I love this. By coincidence I very recently learnt a flatpicking version from Roberto Dalla Vecchia that blends a few chords with melody but I can now add some of Alex's extended lead to this to come up with something really sweet.

GerryOL

I suppose this appeals to me also because it has that lilting feel of a trad Irish tune and I'm from Ireland.

conrad savage

How can anyone not appreciate a beautiful and beautifully played melody??

Michael Clark

A great addition to your quickly growing body of work here, Alex. A beautiful tune that many of us will remember from Ken Burns' series "The Civil War" back in the 90s. Thanks for including it! For those interested in some of the backstory around the song, this might be of interest: https://jayandmolly.com/ashokan-farewell/ashokan-farewell-faq/

Eric Mintz

Very pretty and soothing. Though I love (and am trying to learn) jazz music, I'm defintely open to sweet acoustic guitar pieces like Mountains of Illinois and this. Thumbs up!

David

Hi Alex. I’d love to see your exploration of this type of music with jazz chords and spread triads. John Leventhal is a favorite of mine for this type of playing.

Rob Brazier

More of this, for sure! I love your jazz lessons, but what really got me to become a member (and keeps me here) is broader than jazz - it’s your patient instruction and attention to detail across a wide range of roots and Americana styles. On this particular tune - it’s been a favorite ever since I heard it as a teen on the aforementioned Ken Burns Civil War documentary, something I’ve gone back to many times since. Great stuff!

John Seebach

Really nice playing. This is the kind of music that I usually play when I play out and I love to hear someone else's take on it. Keep it coming. Also, check out Grant Gordy's playing if you haven't yet. Absolute monster of a player (and a super nice guy) who straddles the line between jazz and bluegrass/Appalachian music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDyA-fhZkrQ

Rod

Thank you for sharing this with us. The diversity of musical approaches is fantastic!

Alex Farran Guitar

Thanks Michael, I'm so glad you enjoyed it! That series is incredible isn't it?.. that's where I first heard this tune too.. very powerful. Thanks for the link, that'll make for interesting reading!

Alex Farran Guitar

Good idea.. I'm sure we can find a way to blend all these things somehow ;)

David

Sounds good!

pascal leriche

Everything about guitar is ok! (i’m ok with the cat too)

Paul Scafidi

I’m grinding away at finger style ragtime, Elizabeth Cotton and Ted Greene. Variety is fine with me. You give of your teaching so generously and adeptly, we can only benefit from you sharing works you love in any genre. As a resident of Appalachia, thanks for this one.

Wayne America

Yes, please continue to maintain a wide scope beyond Jazz. I like Americana guitar and appreciate this addition to your catalog.

Jimmy Dodd

Come on over any time. 😊

Julian Gross

for sure, one of the great strengths of this Patreon is the wide (but not TOO wide) range of the styles you teach

Joseph Corso

Beautiful Alex your variety of styles are amazing and greatly appreciated man I am so happy to have found your lessons Thank you for all the hard work…

Ken

Alex, Nice, keep with a diverse range of styles please. Your teaching style, particularly with reference to intervals works well for me.

Alex Farran Guitar

Thanks so much Paul, that means a lot. I'd love to visit Appalachia someday!

Randy Yount

I'm down for more of this content.

Wayne America

OK, this one is straightforward to play through. Out of interest, is there any 12 string guitar music coming out of Appalachia?

Alex Farran Guitar

I’m sure there must be, but struggling to think of any specific examples 🤔 Anyone else? 🤷🏻‍♂️

Ralph Lyle

Jazz, Blues, Jump Blues and Bluegrass. Your 4 food groups.

Eric K

Bluegrass maestro Dan Crary occasionally uses a 12-string guitar, but I can't think of anyone else in that style who does.

Eric K

Thanks for this beautiful arrangement, Alex. I'd definitely like to hear and have a go at anything else in the bluegrass 'flatpicking' style that's caught your attention.

Gert De Groof

Not my preferred cup of tea, but I have an open mind, and watching you play it so effortlessly is enough to trigger my interest. I am a little surprised that this video generates way more reactions than most other lessons in here…so I guess you should keep em coming, mix it up a little. And that gives me a little more time to learn the other lessons that are more up my alley 😉. No doubt that someday I will give this a shot. Standard tuning?

Nick Whalen

Thank you so much for the arrangement. I recorded a cover of your cover but didnt quite work out the phrasing/embellishments you had. They are really very tasteful embellishments, by the way! Good ear training for me to work on :-) https://youtu.be/4e4fxDJk8a4

Alex Farran Guitar

Absolutely beautiful Nick! You captured the mood of the piece even if the melody had some variations! Lovely work 👌🏻 Nice video quality too.. and a lovely guitar! 🤩

Alex Farran Guitar

Thanks Gert, yes indeed standard tuning. As you say, even if it’s not your cup of tea, there’s always something beneficial that can be taken from learning a random piece. Some of the most profound lessons I’ve learned have been when out of my comfort zone and working on something I wouldn’t normally choose 😀.. but also, as you say, perhaps it’ll give you chance to focus on the other things you’re working on 😅

Nick Whalen

Thank you for the kind words! Coming from someone as accomplished and talented as yourself is very nice to hear. I will be using the same guitar to work on your Americana Soul lesson. :-)

JT

Ungar wrote this for the Ken Burns documentary on the Civil War (a masterpiece of the genre). Here is a 3-minute reading of a beautiful letter written by the soldier/lawyer/politician Sullivan Ballou of Rhode Island to his wife at the beginning of the war, using the Farewell. I daresay this is one of the most moving brief moments of film any of us will ever see, and the music plays its part. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78SOjurJkHk

Alex Farran Guitar

This is where I first heard the tune. I remember being probably 11 years old and being struck by the beauty of it. I rewatched the entire documentary series during lockdown and it hasn’t lost its impact one bit. Beautiful 👌🏻

Rich

Yes, very interested! I moved to the Blue Ridge mountain region a few years ago and get to hear a good bit of this style. Would love to learn more.

Bob Meager

Beautiful! The Ashokan Center is just an 1.5 hours south of my home. I believe Jay Ungar wrote the piece in 1982 as a goodbye lament at his festival. It is synonymous with the Ken Burns civil war series for sure though. I could listen to David McCullough talk all day.....kind of like your guitar playing friend! Keep up the inspirational work! ....I mean play! :)

Alex Farran Guitar

Thank you Bob, always very glad to hear more about this beautiful piece of music! Very cool that you live so close to the place too! 😎

Ian Davies

Love this piece of music so much. Watched Ken Burns Civil War several times and this brings back great memories of visits to the US to explore that time in history. Thanks Alex, and yes please, more of the same. 👍

Ot Ratsaphong

Beautiful!! Love the variety that you bring to the table. Jazz, Blues, Country, Folk. Keep up the good work.

Alex Farran Guitar

Thank you my friend, I’m really glad you’re enjoying the styles I cover. Many more to come too! 👍🏻

Alex Farran Guitar

What a brilliant documentary that is eh? Very moving too, especially when this song comes in. 🧡

Jared Chaney

Alex, great rendition. Is there a tab with this?

Alex Farran Guitar

Thanks very much, there is indeed a TAB - just download the zip file attached to the post!

Jim Watts

That was fantastic. Thanks