My dad used to sing this to me as a lullaby when I was a child. He is 80 now. When he was gravely ill and barely conscious last year, I sang it to him by his hospital bed. He couldn't speak or open his eyes, but he began to hum along with me. That's the power of music and of this beautiful song.
Suzie Bye I sang this song in choir in grade 10 and fell in love with it then. I look after some foster children 3 days a week and was singing this song to them, and they all calmed down almost instantly. When I stopped singing, one of the boys asked me to keep singing more songs. They all have varying degrees of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, and some days are a struggle. But I've discovered that music is very powerful for them. Last time I looked after them I brought my tenor recorder and played some songs for them, and they all instantly had tranquil smiles on their faces. They didn't want me to stop playing! Music is indeed very powerful.
Shenandoah I had a terrible head injury a few years ago. People do not think of the trumpet as soothing, but playing the trumpet felt like it put my brain back in order, if not just for a little while. There truly is healing properties to music.
🎤 Your right. The microphones however were not perfectly placed. Thus over have of the rich presence in their voices was not captured. All 8 mics needed to be 3 to 4” away from their mouths. I’ve been capturing the voices of gifted singers since the 80s. But they indeed nailed it. I’d have them go back and do this session over again with the better mic position. The difference in sound quality is huge. Abby Roads knows better, but failed then anyway.
I used to sing this for my grandma. It was her favorite song. I made a recording of me singing it for her and my mom played it for her on her deathbed a few months ago. She was 95 and the greatest person I've ever known. I'll never hear this song without thinking of her❤
I am from the Shenandoah Valley and will be crossing the Shenandoah River today to attend Mass for the first time in months due to the virus. Thank you so much for this beautiful song.
With respect, research the song, it is not about the Shenandoah Valley in VA. There are many versions (no one knows the composer so the original tune is not copyrighted), all are beautiful, but the song is about a voyageur (fur trapper, typically a French Canadian) that loved an Indian maiden whose father was named (in the Anglicized version) Shenandoah.
@@bruceringrose7539 It’s my understanding that that interpretation is also speculative. No one seems to be certain where it came from or the original meaning. As a music teacher myself, I’d love to read some documentation if you know of some. It’s one of my all time favorite American folk songs.
I think it is less about where it came from, although that is very interesting, and more about how it touches each heart that hears it. When I hear this song, I also think of the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, ❤❤❤
I just broke up with my abusive ex, and i feel free. This song came from youtube algorithm, and i hope to never meet another abusive person, and a greater world for me.
I'm sorry you went through that. I was abused in my first marriage. You will have developed a sense a out people now without realising it. You will pick up who you can trust and who not, like a vibe going off in you!. Good luck for your future. Please talk it out with people if you need to, dont bottle it up inside. There are many good support groups out there to help you, but you will be surprised about friends and family if they dont know!'my parents and friends never knew until the last attack on me and our child!!! Wish I had done it sooner xxxx
Adam, I'm grateful that you found to strength to step away from an unhealthy relationship, a very hard thing to do for many. I'm very disturbed by your saying, "I hope to never meet another abusive person..." I hope after four months you are better able to face the reality that there are many abusive people and you are very likely to meet one of them, and even date another one, because we tend to gravitate towards certain kinds of people until our brains get a "make over" and we learn healthier thought patterns. I hope that you can do some IFS or other type of trauma therapy where you can learn why you were in an abusive relationship to begin with and be empowered to make better choices in the future. This is a process which you deserve to go though in order to find that better life you hope for.
This was Polar Bear Brown's favorite song. He was ex-Army Intel 1st Sgt, with survival training in snow and desert, and boy, could he paddle a canoe. He was a good friend, and a pleasure to travel and camp with, and a very sentimental softie. It's good to hear this and think of him. Thank you.
There are only a few quintessential songs that most Americans embrace. They are often old, but deeply revered and this is one of them. To understand and produce this effort is amazing. It speaks volumes about your talents, but also your research why this song is so treasured. Thank you.
I learned this song in grade school. Later my boyfriend in my junior year took me to where his parents had moved to and it was along the Shenandoah river . Every-time I hear this song it reminds me of my first love!!!❤
Two female and six male singers: And the ladies hold their own beautifully. A lovely rendition (and I grew up in the Shenandoah Valley, so I can be a bit picky about this, haha).
February 9, 2024 My family used to travel around the USA every summer of my childhood. One summer we traveled the Blue Ridge Mountain highway. I hope I have this right. But out of all our travels, I very distinctly remember when we came in view of the Shenandoah Valley and I felt such a sacred divine presence of this place. I’ll never forget that experience!!!
With respect, research the song, it is not about the Shenandoah Valley in VA. There are many versions (no one knows the composer so the original tune is not copyrighted), all are beautiful, but the song is about a voyageur (fur trapper, typically a French Canadian) that loved an Indian maiden whose father was named (in the Anglicized version) Shenandoah.
Beautiful-We sang this in Concert Choir in High School & We won the MD State Championship in 1985 with this special song. Brings back many great memories. Wow-just Wow❤
Do you remember whose arrangement you sang? Our high school women's chorus in Pennsylvania sang it in 1985 also, and I have yet to find the same arrangement. It ended with a single voice on "oh Shenandoah" going up to the fifth and then the octave. No choir I've seen on RU-vid uses that arrangement.
Hello I just remember singing it in a round... The Sopranos would go then the Alto's, Tenors , & We had an amazing Base singer. It was so Beautiful that jaws were dropping in the audience. I wish I had a recording of it. It's a hauntingly Beautiful song
With respect, research the song, it is not about the Shenandoah Valley in VA. There are many versions (no one knows the composer so the original tune is not copyrighted), all are beautiful, but the song is about a voyageur (fur trapper, typically a French Canadian) that loved an Indian maiden whose father was named (in the Anglicized version) Shenandoah.
The first female soloist in the blue shirt - she has such a rich textured voice. Very unique! Everything about this song and this group is simply stunning. The sound is so pure!
So many here from the Shenandoah Valley. Me, I’m from the wide Missouri at Omaha, where many did indeed cross on their way west. I’ve always taken the song as pointing west. The Missouri figured large in my childhood, never more than when my father joined countless others to fill sandbags to bolster the city against floods. As a Nebraska farm boy he learned to swim when his own father threw him into the wide Missouri and shouted, "Now, swim!"
A cappella at its very best. Eternal song. Great arrangement. Fabulous performance. It doesn't get better than this. In the midst of the pandemic and Trump madness I may need to play this every day until they all go away.
Sounds cliche to say this is my favorite song. But it's true. As a very young child, it stopped me dead in my tracks. Drew me away from whatever 3 yr old pursuit of the moment; Popsicle, Pokey Little Puppy book, who knows? I just know that anytime I hear it, I'm transported. I am wrapped in a feeling so warm, so full of longing and yearning. This song soars and takes me with it. Always has, always will.
I first heard this song in the movie with James Stewart many years ago and later with Keith Jarret's solo piano version and always felt it was a beautiful piece of music. However, I never realised it had lyrics and this performance is out of this world. I can imagine many a Shanandoan making their final journey with this glorious music taking them home. Truly amazing.
I come from the land of the Shenandoah and this is one of the best versions of this beloved music i have heard. Of course I’m partial to the James Erb arrangement.
With respect, research the song, it is not about the Shenandoah Valley in VA. There are many versions (no one knows the composer so the original tune is not copyrighted), all are beautiful, but the song is about a voyageur (fur trapper, typically a French Canadian) that loved an Indian maiden whose father was named (in the Anglicized version) Shenandoah.
I’m in the southern US (NC) and grew up hearing this song! Btw, if you haven’t seen it, there is a movie called “Shenandoah” starring James Stewart- made in 1965, a must see! Shenandoah was a chief of the Oneida Indian nation (Virginia) who sided with the colonists during the Revolutionary war. This was a beautiful rendition.
Absolutely beautiful. So many people don’t understand that Shenandoah was an Indian Tribal Chief and the song is really to his daughter. About as old of an American folk song as there is.
As far as I know, the song is about a river and a valley en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenandoah_River But here's info on Chief Shenandoah, after whom the river was named en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skenandoa
This is closest to what we did in high school. We had a really really good (it fails to call her) teacher. She had connections on Broadway in new york. This woman would take off her shoes when she got in excitement./ She told me to never stop singing. I never have. yet I also never reached out. She chose our graduation song, which was never walk alone. Yet that's what we have done for years now. I miss those times. I miss the troupe she cultivated. Thank you for the run and inspiration. Mrs. Tiemen.
I sang this song in a choir in college, and I have to say...this song is....hauntingly beautiful. It was hard to sing this song because I had to keep the tears in and keep myself from singing out of tune at the same time.
I know how that is with a lovely song that has grabbed you by the soul and you're standing in front of a lot of people, and you know they want to hear the song, not your voice squeaking or cracking because you're crying. So you double breathe and lift your chin, and demand that your embouchure to work smoothly. And then the song ends...
There is a handful of songs where I get misty eyes and this has always been one of them. Not that I have an explanation for it, I have never actually been in the valley, just driven by in 1966 on my way from FLA to New York. This is a beautiful rendition, thank you!
Mostbeautiful rendition of this song I have ever heard. You actually catpured the sound/feeling of a big rolling river in the moving harmonies. Beautiful voices. Thank you.
I immediately started crying. Such a beautiful arrangement! I sang in high school on the concert choir. Beautiful memories. Also understanding the lyrics. It always saddens me how the United States was taken from the American Indians.
This song made me want to see the "wide Missouri". My mother and I got to travel to South Dakota in 2009, and we spent the night in a lodge on the banks of the Missouri. One of my favorite secular songs and one of my favorite vacations.
As a performing baritone, the opening bass/baritone solo brought tears to my eyes. What a great voice. Depth, tone, pitch perfect, smooth and rich. To me, there's nothing like the tone of a baritone. But them I'm, maybe, a bit partial. Well done folks
Three songs: Wondrous Love which links humanity to God, Balm in Gilead, which promises healing, and Shenandoah which is set in the fertile valleys of two rivers which nourish humanity, indicate that it takes more than one song to speak to our diverse hearts.
Actually no. The modal harmony is everything in this piece. An interesting arrangement, but with less subtlety in the singing than one might have hoped - at times both the loudness of the singing and the closeness of inner voices seemed to drown out the solo lines.
@@p1966kful despite that being said,, to the untrained ear, it was still pleasing to listen to. I had to look up what "Modal Harmony" means! I commend your expertise!!
Fabulous. The Shenandoah Valley is on my short list of places to retire to. You can be sure my grandkids will here this performance. Thanks for giving an old man a few minutes of perfection to listen to.
With respect, research the song, it is not about the Shenandoah Valley in VA. There are many versions (no one knows the composer so the original tune is not copyrighted), all are beautiful, but the song is about a voyageur (fur trapper, typically a French Canadian) that loved an Indian maiden whose father was named (in the Anglicized version) Shenandoah.
@@NewApologist Beautiful area, you are lucky, I’ve hiked and kayaked in the Valley. In the late 70s I provided civil engineering services to Shenandoah National Park.
This is so beautiful. Most of your mixes are spot on. This seems a bit heavy on the upper notes. One of the reasons I enjoy this vocal group so much is the even spread of ranges.
This was the very first song that I sang after joining the university's choir (in Beijing) last year, such beautiful and harmonic melody! Absolutely love your arrangement and interpretation, reminds me so much of the good times I've had in the choir. With love from China and wishing you and your family all the best, music has no boundaries! :D
My choir sang this song and might I say that during one of our run throughs of the song, my friend and I legit teared up because of how beautiful the song was
Yup, gotta talk about this. We're clearly in the presence of expert voices. What typically happens with experts is that over time, their performances become mechanical. They're "technically" well performed. In this arrangement, and every other one I've seen performed by VOCES8, their performance is atypical. @1:24, the soloist in the light blue shirt says "O Shenandoah I love your daughter", and she puts a flourish on the note. Lovely! @2:04, "'tis 7 years, since last I've seen you" they change the key and that was totally unique and surprising to me. That's how it's supposed to be. I've sung this song many times (1st or 2nd tenor) and I know it like I know the National Anthem. But this arrangement gives fresh life to a classic song in a way that both honors the original arrangement, and gives new clarity and relevance to it. At the end of the day, it comes down to the voices, and how they make the listener feel. If I had to lose one sense, I would choose to lose smell; sight and learning are a blessing. To that end, I would like to see subtitles added for the hearing impaired. I'd also like to see a small video on the bottom right with an ASL interpretation perhaps by @Amber Galloway Gallego (see her interpretation of "This Is Me" (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-jo4LL8M31eI.html).
This folk song's origin are lost to time - some say Shenandoah was an Indian chief, while others say it was the name of his daughter. Another story says the song is about the river. Ultimately the song is about loss. "Away, I'm bound away..." Whether in death or to circumstance, it's a very bitter goodbye. I think that's why it's so moving and leaves us wanting more.
