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New England Song Series No. 2:
The True Story of "GOIN' HOME"
From Bohemia To Boston
Goin' home, goin' home, I'm a goin' home;
Quiet-like, some still day, I'm jes' goin' home.It's not far, jes' close by,
Through an open door;
Work all done, care laid by,
Goin' to fear no more.Mother's there 'spectin' me,
Father's waitin' too;
Lots o' folks gather'd there,
All the friends I knew,
All the friends I knew.
Home, I'm goin' home!
These opening lines are from "Goin' Home," a song based on the Czech composer Antonin Dvorak's famous "Largo" theme from his Symphony No. 9 (From the New World), Op. 95. His symphony was composed while he was in America and was first performed by the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall on December 16, 1893.
It has been said that Dvorak's themes in his symphony were inspired by American folk melodies, especially Afro-American or American Indian. But his themes are just as similar to Bohemian folk music.
Did Dvorak have anything to do with writing the words to"Goin' Home"?
No.
"Goin' Home"was actually written by one of Dvorak's pupils, William Arms Fisher (1861-1948), who adapted and arranged the Largo theme and added his own words. This is part of what Fisher wrote in the published sheet music of his song, "Goin' Home" (Oliver Ditson Company):
The Largo, with its haunting English horn solo, is the outpouring of Dvorak's own home-longing, with something of the loneliness of far-off prairie horizons, the faint memory of the red-man's bygone days, and a sense of the tragedy of the black-man as it sings in his "spirituals." Deeper still it is a moving expression of that nostalgia of the soul all human beings feel. That the lyric opening theme of the Largo should spontaneously suggest the words 'Goin' home, goin' home' is natural enough, and that the lines that follow the melody should take the form of a negro spiritual accords with the genesis of the symphony.
-- William Arms Fisher, Boston, July 21, 1922.
There's no break, there's no end,
Jes'a livin' on;
Wide awake, with a smile
Goin' on and on.Some have written that "Goin Home" was based on a spiritual written by Harry Burleigh. But there is no evidence to support that claim, even though Burleigh knew Dvorak. Instead, it is William Arms Fisher who should be credited with adapting and arranging this song in "the form of a negro spiritual."
Fisher described his song as: "a moving expression of that nostalgia of the soul all human beings feel." Thus, it might be suitable for a funeral or any other occasion "of the soul."
But, like the words of the song, the false claims for this beautiful and poignant song just keeping
"Goin' on and on."
Recordings
Two recordings are especially recommended:
1. The English boy choir, Libera, sing a beautiful arrangement
by Robert Prizeman on their CD, angel voices
2. Paul Robeson (1898-1976) at Carnegie Hall --
"Goin' Home" was recorded at a famous Carnegie Hall concert in New York by Paul Robeson, one of the greatest concert singers of the 20th century.
Originally released on 2-LP albums, this concert is highly recommended and available on a CD at this link:Paul Robeson - Live at Carnegie Hall
(The Historic May 9, 1958 Concert)
See the complete words to William Arms Fisher's "Goin' Home" at
For more about William Arms Fisher, go to
Fisher's "Goin' Home"
was poignantly sung by singer, Jan Clayton,
and a chorus in the 1948 20th Century-Fox movie,
THE SNAKE PIT
Relates AMP Links
American Music Recordings Archive [AMRA]
New England Song Series No. 1:
BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC
and the JOHN BROWN SongNew England Song Series No. 3: JINGLE BELLS
New England Song Series No. 4: SIMPLE GIFTS
New England Song Series No. 5:
SONG OF THE OLD FOLKS (Auld Lang Syne)New England Song Series No. 6:
FATHER AND I WENT DOWN TO CAMP -
The Boston Yankee Doodle BalladNew England Composers No. 1: Edwin A. Jones
New England Composers No. 2: George W. Chadwick
Society For Earlier American Music
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