This work was formulated around the poem Milonga de dos hermanos by Argentinan poet Jorge Luis Borges. The poem is a modern revisitation of the Cain and Abel story, wherein the Iberra brothers in the Costa Brava—a pair of prize knifefighters (cuchilleros)—finish in a murderous spat of fratricide. The opening line “Traiga cuentos la guitarra” translates as “The guitar tells us tales”; in this is a clear moment of truth about music and its storytelling function. All music has something to tell us, if we want to listen to it.
Traiga cuentos la guitarra received funding from Creative New Zealand.