2007 John Lennon Scholarship: Kyle Ferguson
Kyle Ferguson is a 2007 graduate of Augustana College in Rock Island, IL. The 22-year-old Illinois native is an accomplished singer/songwriter specializing in thought-provoking acoustic folk music. Aiden Landman of the Rock Island Argus wrote, “Ferguson is among the best in the class of modern ‘New Dylan’ musicians.” With the exception of two years of classical training at Illinois State University, Ferguson is a self-taught guitarist, which is why he describes his playing as ‘unorthodox, but instinctive’. His greatest obstacle so far was overcoming his initial butterflies when singing live. “It took me a while to grow beyond my fear of singing in public,” Ferguson said. “For a couple of years I absolutely refused to do it, and I just kept it hidden. But, I had written a handful of songs and realized that no one would ever hear them unless I got over my insecurity.“ Having tackled this problem, Ferguson now faces the self-imposed challenge of creating songs that serve as vehicles to honestly yet indirectly communicate what he finds to be ‘manifest and of magnitude, but missed’. Don’t Forget to Breathe is an example of his attempts to meet this challenge. Initially titled ‘Notes from a Solipsist’, the song relates to the problem of skepticism with regard to the existence of things outside one’s own first-person experience. The song was recorded at River Drive Studios in Davenport, IA, and features Tim Bowling on cello. Ferguson is currently at work on a recording project under the name blue & brown books with Bowling and brother Peter Bowling on double bass [www.myspace.com/blueandbrownbooks]. The trio intends to independently distribute its chainmail e.p. via the U.S. Postal Service, asking listeners to make and send copies to others. Ferguson plans to continue writing and recording music when he moves to New York City in 2007 in pursuit of a Ph.D. in philosophy from the City University of New York.
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