Tom Mark Gilbert

Stonewater Coast

The California coastline from Monterey and Carmel through Big Sur and down to San Simeon has long been considered, as the southwest coast of Ireland, a geography of romance, intrigue, and inspiration.

I first encountered its beauty on a bicycle journey along Highway 1 from Southern California to Monterey. Riding for hours each day, watching the white clouds moving across the chaparral while the ocean spread out towards the horizon, I marveled then at the way the landscape revealed itself in stages as the road stretched north.

Later, hiking the trail along the Big Sur River, camping miles from the main road amidst spreading ferns, oak, manzanita, and the canopy of ancient redwoods, I gained a deep appreciation for the region, for its grand vistas and unbounded small wonders which has remained over the years.

The music expresses, we trust, the subtle moods and quiet enchantment, the contrasting elements of sunlight and fog, rock and water, windswept hills, and sheltered beaches, one finds along the Stonewater Coast.