Song Title: Ashokan Farewell
Artist: Jay Ungar
Copyright: 1984
Date that it entered the Top 100: Never
Date that it became famous: September 23-27, 1990, as the theme song to the hit PBS documentary, The Civil War.
In January 1998, I was working in the public library here in this western Nebraska town (I realize now what a transient I've been most of my life). An attractive young woman (age 29), an east-coast transplant, came in to sign up for a library card. I helped her to register, and we took an immediate liking to one another. I'll call her "Sarah."
For the next few months we carefully tested the waters with one another, neither one being brave enough to make a first move, but dropping lots of not-so-subtle hints to one another.
During one of our conversations Sarah talked about all of the different musical instruments she plays. She told me that she plays the violin, mandolin, flute, clarinet, piano, and probably one or two others that I have forgotten. I believe she said her favorite instrument is the violin.
I was very impressed, to say the very least.
On April 29, 1998, she came into the library again. As a conversation starter I told her about my favorite violin song, "Ashokan Farewell," and highly recommended that she listen to it sometime. She agreed to do so, and I told her I would loan it to her the next time she came to the library.
She returned three days later, and I gave her the tape.
As she was leaving she said, “We’ll have to go out for coffee sometime."
I gladly accepted her offer.
I didn’t hear from her for almost two weeks after that. I was beginning to think that maybe she had disappeared forever (and without even returning my tape!). Finally, she came to visit me in the library again one day. She told me she had been out of state on a long visit to her previous home (she had come to the library before she left to tell me she was going, but it had been my day off).
She told me she loved “Ashokan Farewell.” She then very proudly showed me the sheet music for the song. She had bought it in her favorite little music store while out of state. She said she had already begun learning to play it.
On the morning of June 11, 1998, I met Sarah at her house, as requested. We were finally going out for that "cup of coffee." Actually, we were going window shopping, but the difference between them is just semantics.
We made a minute or two of small talk in her "front parlor." She then stopped the conversation and invited me to sit on an old-fashioned parlor bench. She nervously took out her violin, told me to be kind, and began playing Ashokan Farewell...
After only two or three weeks of practice...
Wow...
As I sat on that bench and listened (and watched her face), I suddenly realized I was being "serenaded" by a beautiful young woman with a violin (a cruder person would say I was being "seduced" by a beautiful woman with a violin). I had never been in the presence of any violinist before, much less the presence of a beautiful young violinist who was playing only for me. So you can imagine how honored I felt, among other feelings.
She played with amazing skill. I was in awe.
Nonetheless, I noticed one very minor flaw during her performance. But it was a very endearing flaw. As she played, I could hear the bow vibrating ever so slightly in her hand. She had obviously noticed it too, because when she finished she immediately told me the vibrating was due to her extreme nervousness. She then confessed that she had learned to play that song only for me.
