Out of the Dark

One of the advantages of involving myself in the diverse artistic milieu of New York is finding many sources of inspiration ? including non-musical ones. For several years I have been stimulated by exhibitions of Abstract Expressionist art. During my trips to museums and galleries, studying paintings, collages, and sculptures, it has occurred to me that the aesthetic of Abstract Expressionism ? states of feeling expressed through gesture ? is as relevant to music as to painting. I have come to love, in particular, the works of Helen Frankenthaler. Her work, for me, embody the spirit of Abstract Expressionism: visceral sensual, uninhibited, probing ? whether it be in a large, brilliantly colored canvas, or a tiny work on paper, with just a few dabs of color. Not only do I respond to her highly charged, evocative works, but also to her free creative attitude, of which she has provided the following glimpse in the PBS Television program, ?Helen Frankenthaler: Toward a New Climate?: