Steve Schwartz wrote:

>The finale, a contrapuntal tour-de-force, pits the "Dargason" (also known,
>at least in the U.S., as "The Irish Washerwoman") against "Greensleeves."
>Who knew these tunes went together?

Maybe they don't.  The Dargason is a Renaissance country dance.  Perhaps
it is the 6/8 time and the similarity in structure that tempts the ear.
Curiously, once when I was whistling the Dargason, an Irish-American
colleague nearby thought it was yet another Irish tune.  Who knows what
washed up on the Emerald Isle in those days?

John Dalmas
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