SOGP Music

Oops I did it again! I went and made another experimental video for one of my songs. I hope you enjoy it.

:)

T

I know it's been quite some time since I have posted anything directly from myself. To be honest, my fight against invasive stage IV Adenocarcinoma was a bit more brutal on various parts of my body including but not limited to my immunity and its direct relationship to immunology, hematology serology and neurology.

Among the biggest issues was and continues to be peripheral neuropathy. For those who are not familiar with this phenomenon, a condition that develops as a result of damage to the peripheral nervous system.

Symptoms can range from numbness or tingling, to pricking sensations (paresthesia), or muscle weakness. Areas of the body may become abnormally sensitive leading to an exaggeratedly intense or distorted experience of touch (allodynia). In such cases, pain may occur in response to a stimulus that does not normally provoke pain. An example could be numb fingertips while typing or while fretting a string on a guitar or even the way your feet can feel like they are wrapped in corn flakes and sand whenever you wiggle your toes.

But I digress, what I mean to say at this point is that I am happy to announce that my doctors have informed me that I am cancer free!

In medical terms it means that they got all the tumor, with surrounding margin of tissue to ensure full capture. That removes the risk of cells migrating around the body and finding a new place to start growing. Considering my surgery was performed on May 1st 2017 I found out the good news 3 days later. So from this day forward I consider myself to be a cancer survivor with the victory being celebrated on May 4th of ever year. Therefore on that day I can look myself in the mirror with conviction and say "May the Fourth be with you!"

Now... where was I... oh yes... praise and thanks... I also want to give a huge shout out to everyone who has helped me along the way. It is a wonderful experience to the senses in the form of the feeling of love and support and empathy and compassion that has washed over me.

This became especially abundant in the form the the doctors, nurses and patient assistants that were the core team of my surgical victory. Without their sense and sensibility I don't know where I would be... but I know I wouldn't be right here right now typing this up this evening.

I also wanted to give shout outs to all my FB and social media friends who cheered me along the way.

I have been home for a little over 24 hours at I can honestly say that without question, I severely underestimated the requirements in terms of energy and control needed to be physically away from hospital care.

Since I am still in recuperation and recovery mode from the surgery its going to take some time before I can become productive again. But I have taken a couple of steps to start the wheels turning.

Recently I posted a first in what I hope are a series of videos from my third discography Space Time Energy Matter.

In case you missed it, here is the video for Out of the Blue. Once I start to get my strength and endurance to sit up again I will be working on other songs from (expired link). I hope you enjoy!

(expired link)

I know it's been quite some time since I have posted anything directly from myself. To be honest, my fight against invasive stage IV Adenocarcinoma was a bit more brutal on various parts of my body including but not limited to my immunity and its direct relationship to immunology, hematology serology and neurology.

Among the biggest issues was and continues to be peripheral neuropathy. For those who are not familiar with this phenomenon, a condition that develops as a result of damage to the peripheral nervous system.

Symptoms can range from numbness or tingling, to pricking sensations (paresthesia), or muscle weakness. Areas of the body may become abnormally sensitive leading to an exaggeratedly intense or distorted experience of touch (allodynia). In such cases, pain may occur in response to a stimulus that does not normally provoke pain. An example could be numb fingertips while typing or while fretting a string on a guitar or even the way your feet can feel like they are wrapped in corn flakes and sand whenever you wiggle your toes.

But I digress, what I mean to say at this point is that I am happy to announce that my doctors have informed me that I am cancer free!

In medical terms it means that they got all the tumor, with surrounding margin of tissue to ensure full capture. That removes the risk of cells migrating around the body and finding a new place to start growing. Considering my surgery was performed on May 1st 2017 I found out the good news 3 days later. So from this day forward I consider myself to be a cancer survivor with the victory being celebrated on May 4th of ever year. Therefore on that day I can look myself in the mirror with conviction and say "May the Fourth be with you!"

Now... where was I... oh yes... praise and thanks... I also want to give a huge shout out to everyone who has helped me along the way. It is a wonderful experience to the senses in the form of the feeling of love and support and empathy and compassion that has washed over me.

This became especially abundant in the form the the doctors, nurses and patient assistants that were the core team of my surgical victory. Without their sense and sensibility I don't know where I would be... but I know I wouldn't be right here right now typing this up this evening.

I also wanted to give shout outs to all my FB and social media friends who cheered me along the way.

I have been home for a little over 24 hours at I can honestly say that without question, I severely underestimated the requirements in terms of energy and control needed to be physically away from hospital care.

Fortunately two of my friends Miss D and Al have provided a great deal of assistance in readjusting to life outside the hospital.

Since I am still in recuperation and recovery mode from the surgery its going to take some time before I can become productive again. But I have taken a couple of steps to start the wheels turning.

Recently I posted a first in what I hope are a series of videos from my third discography Space Time Energy Matter.

In case you missed it, here is the video for Out of the Blue. Once I start to get my strength and endurance to sit up again I will be working on other songs from (expired link). I hope you enjoy!

(expired link)

The first of hopefully more videos to come. This is a test, this is only a test. Did you study? :P

Space Time Energy Matter is now available on iTunes and Spotify just in time for the holidays!

(expired link)

(expired link)

Enjoy!

Hey everyone,

I finally took the plunge and now Space Time Energy Matter is available on Google Play. Soon to follow will be iTunes, Amazon, and more... I will post updates as they come on online.

(expired link)

Enjoy!

T

Hi folks, its me again! :)

I wanted to reach out to everyone and thank them for all the support I have received in the last couple weeks. It has truly been amazing. As much as I do not enjoy this next part, I am out of options. I need your help.

The impact of this diagnosis has devastating and I am in no position to deal with this on my own. I have started a fundraiser and will be sending out emails directly from their asking for your help in my fight. I wanted you to know ahead of time so there will be no confusing it with a spam or phishing attempt by a prince from Nigeria.

I know this isn't the most convenient time of year but this came out of nowhere.

I am including the link here as well but not sure it will be approved for use through N1M so I am doing it just in case. Either way, if you can't help, please share and encourage others to on my behalf.

(expired link)

Thank you in advance.

T

I am including this quick update asking for your help and to pass the word on.

I am sharing this with everyone and ask them to share and pass this along to help me in this fight.
Help Thomas Ferraro in the fight against Stage IV Cancer
(expired link)

What can I say....

This isn't the kind of update I had ever imagined writing but eventually things will get to a point where my attentions here may be radically curtailed. I was hoping to release more material over the last few months, then this happened.

Over the last year or so I had some issues with my health that started to get worse, but over the summer I managed to get the treatment needed to remedy the situation and I thought I was well on my way to recovery and gaining back some of the time and energy I lost as a result of the issues.

What I didn't know, and frankly no one did because up until this there was no indication, no symptoms that were a tell tale sign, until after the surgery.

As a normal process after the surgery there is analysis and it is only then during the pathology of the tissue that they found it.

The biopsy confirmed Stage IV Cancer, specifically Adenocarcinoma, a rare and aggressive form that can spread rapidly. If the cancer extends through the primary site to the surrounding tissue or has spread to nearby lymph nodes or organs, the 5-year survival rate is 34%. If the cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, the 5-year survival rate is 5%.

Stage IV means that it has invaded through the primary site into surrounding tissue and organs.

Currently there is no sign that it has spread into the lymphs nodes or metastasized, but they didn't get all of it due to its location and invasive nature. So now I will be beginning treatment soon and from there, well... to tell you the truth, I am not exactly sure.

As of this writing the oncologists and surgeons are reviewing the imaging that was done this week to see the extent of the disease and further determine the type and course of treatment.

I also don't know how bad the side effects are going to be and what it is going to do to my motivation factors. The knowledge alone has caused considerable distraction.

I am considering all of my options in terms of dealing with this along with the secondary aspects that come with it. Keep me in your thoughts while I take this journey.

Hey everyone,

August 5th 2016...

Okay so obviously I didn't get much more accomplished before having to go to the body mechanic last month. But now that the wheels are back on and the tires are balanced it's time to make tracks and get more work done.

On the bright side its been a wonderful feeling of all the support I have gotten from the community and with your support, Red Shift/Blue Shift, Strange Attractors and Persistence have reached #1 Instrumental for Texas, Top 5 Instrumental United States and Top 5 Instrumental Globally.

With any luck at all, hopefully I can get more material out this month. Although I really should stop making deadlines... I would rather the song sound great than be out on time.

Stick with me folks, and again thank all of you for your support.

:)

T

July 12th 2016...

Well summer is here and its hot as hell and I am still working on new material... getting even closer to completion and hopefully I can finish them up soon. I have two weeks before I have to go to the body mechanic so keep your fingers crossed.

Hope everyone is having a great summer and staying out of the heat!

Rock on!

T

Hi folks, its me again!!!

If you have watched any news you will see that Houston had another massive monsoon roll through the area and needless to say I sat at home and had little to do after a couple days... but I had plenty of time to work on a new song and I actually managed to complete it in pretty close to record time.

The song is Red Shift \ Blue Shift from my 3rd discography Space Time Energy Matter and I had a lot of fun recording, tracking, mixing and mastering it. I even tried a few new techniques that I think payed off big time. I only have two more songs to complete this discography and I am really enjoying the challenge of coming up with new material.

Its been amazing how much support and praise I have received from all my fans here on N1M and I really hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did creating it.

Once again thank you for all your support, it means the world to me!

Peace!

T

I know I've been away for a long long time... sounds like a song doesn't it?!?

...and no, that is not Adele... it's Todd Rundgren... but I digress.

Since December I have been busy working on new material while enjoying the success of Strange Attractors that I released in mid January. First off I want to personally thank everyone for the listens, likes, shares and recommendations that Strange Attractors got right from the start. Like most musicians and composers I don't like to have to choose which is my favorite song because they are all like children. Some you hope mature and grow and become something more than what you started with. Some more than others.

I won't say I had any great expectations of being discovered by anyone famous, of whom I really can't think of any names of famous producers or talent scouts out there. The most I ever hope for is that the songs I create make you feel something... even if it is not the same feeling I had putting into the particular song. But to get you to a state of mind where you are involuntarily tapping your foot or bobbing your head or walking with that certain strut to the beat of the music... that is the goal I have had in every effort for every song I have ever recorded and released.

Of course that also goes for all those songs I still have stuck in their various project folders that still have not seen light of day... some are just waiting for the right inspiration, some are waiting for the complete arrangement and some are just sitting there waiting for me to actually play solo the way I hear it in my mind...

One song I am working on I tried two or three takes last night.... the last take was #150.... and it wasn't any better than the first 149... Oh sure there were a couple bars here and a couple bars there I could copy and comp the whole thing together... and I tried that... and it sounded lifeless and boring... This one particular song I have discovered is the kind that has to be done as a performance... like I am standing on stage in front of a crowd which means I have to hit it right on the bullseye and I can't afford to drop a single note. Now you can always say that I could get as far as possible and punch in the rest... been there.. done that... wore out the t-shirt... This is one that when I do finally get there... you will understand that it is one that has to be nailed from start to finish.

Maybe if I combine take #151 with a bottle of 151... nah... last time I tried that I ended up in Phoenix, Arizona during 4th of July.... and I was living in Plainfield, New Jersey at that time!

So anyway, I wanted to touch base with all of your and let you know how happy I am with your reaction to all of the songs I have released so far. In the next few days I am going to rotate a couple more songs into this limited 3 song set here but you can always find my entire collection on FB and RN pages. I will send links to those who request them directly.

There are two songs I have yet to release here that are from a previous discography but I am confident that you will find them just as pleasing to the ear. So keep tuned in and keep listening and liking and sharing as such because none of this is possible without all of you.

Thank you again so much!

T