I started my walk through this world from the streets of Newburgh, New York. An industrial mid-size city in the 1950's, Newburgh had once been famous as a port on the Hudson River. Throughout its early history down to the present day, the mighty Hudson River has played a large part in the drama of the lives of Newburgh's citizens. Be they brick men, bankers, lawyers, ferrymen or even artists, the Hudson River has provided the matter from which a culture has risen.

I grew up in Newburgh in the late 60s and early 70s and have fond memories of my childhood on William Street, a typical Italian immigrant neighborhood where kids played, parents sat outside ‘til the wee hours on hot summer nights, and everyone knew everybody else. It was indeed an idyllic time for my brother Anthony and me, although the reverie was broken by the untimely death of our father.

When I left home at the age of 19, never again to live in my hometown, I set my sights on the world outside of Newburgh. As I’ve grown older, that world holds a limited amount of interest for me. I now live several hours from Newburgh and the timeless memories that haunt my dreams. As I yearn for the simplicity of childhood again, I keep hearing myself say, "I want to go home, I want to go home."

That’s where my head was when approaching this arrangement of "Shenandoah"; my heart was in my throat. I have always thought of my childhood home when hearing this beautiful melody. Now, allow me to share the musical concepts that brought this arrangement to life.

The four-measure Dmaj#11 introduction is intended to be reminiscent of a dream. Like life, the next section highlighting the melody starts off very simply and eventually gets more involved in a contrapuntal manner. Almost without exception, each of us begins life in the same manner but inevitably, life becomes more complex.

The important resolution chords resolve emotionally rather than theoretically. After the first pass at this beautiful melody, there is a two-measure arpeggio signifying the passage of time which introduces the Villa-Lobos device of a bass melody and treble harmony. All the while, the melody remains and yet is changed ever so slightly by contrapuntal movement and harmonic invention.

We then come to the part with more arpeggios and a key change, thus telling us that it’s time to move on. The result is an almost discordant approach to the melody in the key of G major and then Bb, returning to the original key of D major to finish the arrangement. As the melody returns to its original key it is almost simple again, yet it has been changed by what the music has been thru. This is a lot like life in that in our mature years we may yearn for the simplicity of our childhood, yet we’ve been changed by the discordant roads we’ve sometimes had to travel.

After the Coda, the piece ends and fades with the same dreamy Dmaj#11 chord to take us out of dreamland and back into the wide-awake world of reality. When I play this ending it is very moving for me, and I hope for the audience as well.

Thomas Wolfe’s novel, You Can't Go Home Again, comes to mind. Sorry Mr. Wolfe; you were wrong. We all can visit the people and places we love in our memories and our music. May this arrangement help you to do just that!

About the Author

Alfonse Ciaccio has had a love affair with the guitar since the age of 8, the result being a lifelong pursuit of perfection of his craft. He studied the classic guitar with Mrs. Mary Anthony, famed protégé' of the Spanish master Narciso Yepes, and with Dr. Matthew Slotkin of Mansfield University and the Eastman School of Music. With an emphasis on solo jazz guitar arranging and performing, Ciaccio studied for years with the legendary Gene Bertoncini of New York City and Steve Brown of Ithaca College.

His first solo CD project Pieces of My Heart was released in 2004.

"...after hearing a performance of Alfonse Ciaccio, you will know what love of the guitar is..."
- Gene Bertoncini

"Definitely someone to seek out and listen to..."
- Joe Negri