"All I Know - Shades of Fools (It's the Why)" EPx5 is Volume 2 of one of my fav old (circa late 2024) KNOWsutra song, and flows Jazz ❯ Burlesque ❯ Indie ❯ Blues

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All I really know is I don’t know shit about fck, like Socrates said (ha), and all I see is fools who care to know and show more than grow, flow, and glow, and rarely bow... Some play fair, some go low, and the shady ones, oh, they blow (as I say in “Shady Fool”, the sister song of “Shades of Fools”, released as a folk single you should totally check out:).

... I’ve lived, I’ve learned, I’ve seen fools of many shades—the ones who hide, the ones who boast, the ones who lie for a piece of a foolish fame buffet, and on and on. But when the circus lights go dim, and the moon casts its shadow, the why is the only truth this fool really cares to know (because that is how I grow and flow).

And you, what do you know? Is why your favorite question too?  Are we all just dancing in silly circles, or is there a way to grow beyond the dummy reality show?

#WhoAreTheFools #MasqueradeOfIntentions #PhilosophyMeetsMusic #PlatoWouldVibe #SocratesKnows #lyricsmatter (and are available upon request)

[01] All I Know - Shades of Fools • KNOWsutra All I know Upright Bass Folk JAZZ

[02] All I Know - Shades of Fools • KNOWsutra Accordion Chanson Jazz BURLESQUE

[05] All I Know - Shades of Fools • KNOWsutra Destiny BLUES

[03] All I know - Shades of Fools • KNOWsutra Piano Jazz BURLESQUE

[04] All I know - Shades of Fools • KNOWsutra Cello Burlesque INDIE

Punishment - Diabolic [Empyreann Remix]

Premiered 10/8/2023 - Auer Hall at Indiana University

Speaker: Sy Anderson
Flute: Lilah Senibaldi 
Oboe: Hanna Noughani 
Clarinet: Paige Stafford 
Bass Clarinet: Renae Dishman 
Bassoon: Jacob Auchman 
Horn: Andre Richter 
Trumpet: Barton Sopata 
Trombone: Robert Cardon-Wake 
Tuba: Daniel Cox 
Percussion 1: Mihail Babus 
Percussion 2: Braedon Bomgardner 
Piano: Josh Catanzaro 
Violin I: Will Mayhew 
Violin II: Arthur Trælnes 
Viola: Maeve Whelan 
Cello: Thea Dardanis 
Double Bass: River Makinney
Conductor: Jae Hwan Lee
Audio Engineer: William Heilbraun

          “The Butterfly” is an experiment in sonic/literary meaning. It is our inclination as humans to assign meaning to an abstract idea that we find somehow emotionally engaging, but, especially in music, there is often no greater meaning. It is merely something to which we may have an emotional response, but nothing more. The arts exist on a scale of most to least abstract: Architecture and textiles are almost completely abstract, while poetry and prose are not so at all. This is because, in the language arts, the express goal is to convey meaning. Every word in itself carries a connotation that is contextualized by accompanying text. Even the writers of nonsense, such as Lewis Carroll and Edward Lear, invent words and phrases in order to enhance a nonsensical meaning, but a meaning, not to mention a narrative, nonetheless. There are also those who write poetry from a string of completely made up sounds that convey absolutely no meaning beyond that contained in the tone of its delivery—the use of verbal, conversational sound to achieve the abstract.
        “The Butterfly," however, employs aurally pleasing sentence clauses tied together using poetic devices (juxtaposition, alliteration, personification, etc.) and negative capability in order to create complex imagery that completely lacks any conceivable narrative or greater meaning. That means there are no metaphors, symbolism, allegory, allusion, or moral—just images aided by sound flashing before an audience. Inevitably, each individual listener will independently contextualize the words, creating a story that is completely different not only from that of the other listeners, but also the composer. 
        This is done in one of three ways: constructing a nonsensical, meaningless poem and then writing music to enhance it (text painting); composing music and then constructing a poem to enhance it (what I call “music painting”); and taking the clauses of already existing lines and stacking them on top of one another to create new ideas. Just as words can have different connotations, the musical motives employed throughout the piece can denote different ideas or images depending on the text that accompanies it. 
        So the audience finds itself with a paradox: The greater meaning of this work is that this work has no greater meaning. 

The Butterfly (2023)

In a Holt of Giant Hatpins (2025) was premiered by Thornton Edge under the direction of Donald Crockett with soloist Alessia Jensen on Tuesday, April 15th 2025 at 7:30 pm in Newman Recital Hall at the University of Southern California.

Thornton Edge:
Soprano: Alessia Jensen
Flute/Piccolo: Luke Blancas
Oboe: Gibson Mahnke
Clarinet: Harrison Chiang
Bassoon: Christopher Lee
Horn: Daniel Halstead
Percussion 1: Marcos Salgado
Percussion 2: Marcos Rivera
Harp: Zoe O'Shaughnessy
Piano: Benjamin Beckman
Violin I: Laura Gamboa
Violin II: Maya Irizarry-Lambright
Viola: Nico Valencia
Cello: Ella Kaale
Bass: Julien Henry
Conductor: Donald Crockett
Audiovisual: Alex Melzer (recording.LA)

Program Notes:
Music is perhaps the most abstract art form, which has confused and upset audiences for centuries.

Composers have thought up a good many ways to combat this, from Beethoven who denotes mood and character, to the overtly programmatic music meant to literally represent a narrative. What these have in common is the use of concrete art forms (such as text), which are used to guide the listener and give the music direction.

This begs the question: if text can be used as the narrative basis to make an abstract piece less abstract, can music be utilized as a springboard to employ a concrete art form in an abstract manner? “In a Holt of Giant Hatpins” uses music to justify text. With the exception of the first line, all of the text was written either after the music or in conjunction with the music. This means that any resulting narrative (if one exists) is dictated solely by the demands and development of the music. In this particular approach to “music painting”, the text makes semantic sense. The words, at least to me, reflect the music. The beauty of the text is rooted primarily in the sound of each word or stanza as it relates to the words and stanzas on either side of it. The result is a fantastical experience, exploring a world as unique and sprawling as the music.

“In a Holt of Giant Hatpins” is about nothing in particular. Any meaning extrapolated from the text or the music has equal origins in the mind of the listener.

In a Holt of Giant Hatpins (2024)

vocals: J.D. Felix
Written & Performed by L.A. (fridjiit) Ferguson

Dance of the Prozac Zombies [Take 3]

Palo Santo is the opening signal flare of a bigger campaign built on one blunt truth: healing is absurd.
The track pulls from your real therapy sessions, your ritualistic creativity, and that “talk folks down the road of Radical Acceptance” energy. Sonically, it leans woozy and warm—something between a mantra, a confession, and a cleansing.

Palo Santo

… because life on earth is a Psychedelic Cabaret, and “music is the only religion that delivers the goods” (like Frank said). 

To be clear, all I really know is I dunno shit about fck (like Socrates said:)—music and songwriting included. But(t) I feel it, the music, so damn deeep in my soul! I’m just a humble existential fool, a silly banana who likes to play and share, to question and learn. Words are my oldest best friends, hearing myself sing is a freaking miracle (trust me on that lol), and I believe curiosity and #gratitude are the keys to happiness… So voilà, there’s that.

Also, (if you’re curious) BananaSutra is not just a made up BS brand kinda word, it’s actually the name of my DIY Bible—a collection of songs telling true stories of faith, to help me (and perhaps you) make sense of a world gone wild, like bananas gone foul in shallow ignorance and deadly malevolence… Think of it as an agnostic testament of sorts, an audio book of songs with quirky lyrics about things that matter, like the definition of right and wrong, and the meaning of truth, joy, justice, peace, grace, and awe 🕊️

Some call it Artificial Intelligence, but(t) I call Authentic Imagination, Alternative Ideas, Augmented Innuendos, Abstract Illogisms… hopefully, you get the gist? The point being, life is the story we tell ourselves and LYRICS matter—each @bananasutra song has a wondering root and a loving purpose, guided by one of (my) 7 (bananas) sutras: 
- KNOWsutra : is it fair?
- BLOWsutra : is it foul?
- SHOWsutra : is it fun?
- GROWsutra : is it fear?
- FLOWsutra : is it free?
- GLOWsutra : is it fab?
- BOWsutra : is it awe?

I'M NOT HUMAN.
NOT HAVING FUN.

Avant-garde/experimental producer and sometimes vocalist

i was killed, then i was alive again, now i am singing

Composer, hornist, and wordist whose works blend narratives with the abstract to explore the complexity, beauty, and humor of the illogical.

New tracks tagged #Absurd