What do such diverse musicians as Elvis Presley, André Rieu, Olivia Newton-John, Roy Black, Jethro Tull, James Last and Leonard Cohen have in common? The answer: they all (and many more) have interpreted the old English folk song "Greensleeves". Since the 16th century, the melody by an unknown author has been a perennial favorite in all kinds of musical styles, including rock and jazz. Shakespeare mentioned the song in one of his plays as early as 1602, and even in the 21st century the story of the "green sleeves" has not yet been told to its end. In the song, the green sleeves stand for an adored woman whose dress has the aforementioned green sleeves. Stefan Schwalgin presents his own version of the traditional theme by letting the "sleeves" swing ("Swinging the Sleeves"). The majority of the arrangement is in swing rhythm – as a jazz waltz and in the related 5/4 time. In the spectacular trumpet chorus, Dave Brubeck's legendary "Take Five" is deliberately evoked. The main section in the fast tempo is framed before and after by the "Greensleeves" theme in the slow, traditional style. Within the up-tempo section, an inserted contrapuntal treatment of the theme refers to the song's origin in the Renaissance era. Note: The audio sample is the ensemble version from our series "RUNDEL's Pops for Brass", not the brass band version!
