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Stories   >   Silkroad with Rhiannon Giddens has released 'Far Down Far,' from forthcoming 'American Railroad' / World Music Central

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Silkroad with Rhiannon Giddens has released 'Far Down Far,' from forthcoming 'American Railroad' / World Music Central

Posted: October 30, 2024

Yo-Yo Ma conceived Silkroad in 1998 as a reminder that even as rapid globalization resulted in division, it brought extraordinary possibilities for working together. Seeking to understand this dynamic, he recognized the historical Silk Road as a model for cultural collaboration – for the exchange of ideas, tradition, and innovation across borders. In a groundbreaking experiment, he brought together musicians from the lands of the Silk Road to co-create a new artistic idiom: a musical language founded in difference, a metaphor for the benefits of a more connected world.

This initial gathering of artists was rooted in a simple, initial question: “What happens when strangers meet?” And thus Silkroad was born, as both a touring ensemble comprised of world-class musicians from all over the globe, and a social impact organization working to make a positive impact across borders through the arts.

Today, under the leadership of Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens, Silkroad creates music that engages difference, sparking radical cultural collaboration and passion-driven learning for a more hopeful and inclusive world. What does this look like?

The Grammy Award-winning Silkroad Ensemble — Silkroad thrills audiences worldwide with a collective of artists representing dozens of nationalities and artistic traditions, demonstrating how great beauty can emerge from great difference.

Creation of new music — Silkroad builds upon a musical language founded in difference and collaboration that draws on the rich tapestry of world traditions that make up our many-layered contemporary identities.

Social impact initiatives — Silkroad brings music, hope, and healing to underserved,  culturally rich, urban, rural, indigenous, and refugee communities.

Educational partnerships — Silkroad uses the arts to ignite passions and foster education  in students, teachers, and musicians through training workshops and residency programs in public schools, universities, prisons, and indigenous and refugee communities.


FROM World Music Central……..The Silkroad Ensemble, led by Rhiannon Giddens, has released “Far Down Far,” the second single from their forthcoming album, American Railroad, set for release on November 15, 2024. Composed by Silkroad artist and Celtic harp player Maeve Gilchrist, the piece is an adaptation of the traditional jig “The Far Down Farmer,” reimagined to reflect the experiences of Irish laborers who worked on the American railroads.

American Railroad represents four years of dedicated research and collaboration. This ambitious album brings together Silkroad artists who traveled across the United States, exploring the history and music of the communities involved in building the transcontinental railroad and connecting railways across North America.

Maeve Gilchrist shared: “I was drawn towards a jig called ‘The Far Down Farmer,’ pulled from Francis O’Neill’s Music of Ireland, a collection of over 1,850 pieces of Irish folk tunes and songs. During my research into the Irish involvement in the building of the American Transcontinental Railroad, I read about the tension that existed on occasion between Catholic and Protestant workers. The Catholic workers – often from a more economically depressed background – were sometimes referred to as ‘Far Downers.’

“I took this simple, two-part jig, and deconstructed the vocabulary, using the motifs and intervals as if I were building a train, laying the tracks and allowing the melody to build up momentum and speed as it gets slung between our respective instruments. I hope that this composition pays tribute to the roots of the tune and the back-breaking work of the workers on both sides of the religious and cultural divide while allowing the melody to fly in the hands of women who would likely never have been given a fiddle or a flute – let alone a hammer to build with!”

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