String Trio: Maguey de Tlalcoyote

Commissioned by the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and first performed there in 2018 by the Zebra Trio: Ernst Kovacic (violin), Steven Dann (viola) and Anssi Karttunen (cello).

Maguey de tlalcoyote is a plant of the genus Agave and is native to New Mexico; ‘tlalcoyote’ is the Nahuatl word for a badger. Anssi Karttunen explains that, "According to Lindbergian logic a badger is a kind of coyote with stripes, therefore a kind of a zebra. The agave plant provides another Lindbergian metaphor: in its last summer the plant develops a huge stem and flowers just once, then dies. In Mexico tequila and mezcal are made with agave, and even the worms that live in the plant can be used. Agave also produces a fibre called sisal which is used in products ranging from paper to carpets, and in times past it provided both the needle and ink for making tattoos. In Australia the stem of the agave flower is dried and used to make didgeridoos. Agave is a natural sweetener and can be used as food in many ways. Maguey de tlalcoyote is reported to alleviate a number of health problems such as bruises, diabetes, dysentery, flatulence, hemolysis, indigestion, insulin resistance, jaundice, parasites, swelling and syndrome X. It can also be used as an antibacterial, and as a diuretic, hair-restorer, laxative, nutritional supplement and source for steroids. With this string trio the usefulness of Agave palmeri is now complete. In short, Maguey de tlalcoyote is a metaphor for life."