Die Tischtuchtolle ("The Tablecloth Lunatic") is one of a series of short works for solo instrument based upon characters from Der Ohrenzeuge: Fünfzig Charaktere ("Earwitness: Fifty Characters"), written in 1974 by the Bulgarian-born British-Austrian novelist Elias Canetti (1905-1994). Canetti’s distinctive studies incorporate poetic imagery, singular insights, and unabashed wordplay to create fifty ironic paradigms of human behavior. This collection of works, begun in 1997, was inspired by the vividly surreal depictions of Canetti’s characters and include works for contrabass, violin, bass flute, ocarina, contrabassoon, glass harmonica, alto saxophone, trumpet, and percussion.

Die Tischtuchtolle was composed in October of 1997 and revised in May of 2007. The work was first performed by violinist Nagina Stoyanova in Sofia, Bulgaria on 17 November 2001.