My favorite Ben

One of the coolest things about being a conductor who specializes in the Pops side of orchestral music is that I work with an incredible diversity of artists from all kinds of non-classical genres.  And while it’s amazing working with all of them, I have a special place in my heart for Ben Folds.

(Holy crap we looks so young…)

We first worked together at the Mann Center in Philly in 2005 and it was a watershed moment for me – here was an artist whose music I loved and we were performing onstage in a way that seemed to be bringing together the best of piano-based alt-rock and the huge soundscape of the symphony orchestra.  And for Ben, it was the first time (so he said!) he’d worked with a conductor who could sing most of the lyrics on his setlist.

Since then we’ve worked together a dozen times with various orchestra, from Minnesota to Cincinnati to North Carolina.  A huge part of what makes Ben’s orchestra shows so special is that his orchestral charts are not simply about laying down some symphonic background to his songs;  instead, they involve the orchestra in a way that makes them integral to the performance so that the cumulative effect is an actual reimagining of his originals.  There are a lot of charts out there where if you took out the orchestra you wouldn’t really notice, because it’s just about the artist.  Not so for Ben.

On top of that, Ben has an incredible respect for what orchestral musicians do onstage, and for classical musicians in general (just listen to his chamber music album So There, which also includes his Piano Concerto).  A regular speech mid-show gives a shoutout to orchestral music in general and how important it is as part of a larger musical culture.  And he gets the audience involved in the music making as well!

He’s a fantastic songwriter, of course, but his musicianship is pretty astonishing as well – for those of you who have witnessed him improvising a song onstage during a show , you know firsthand his extraordinary creativity.

But at heart he still is a goofball.

And it’s comforting that his essential nature hasn’t changed at all over the years.

Like, at ALL.

Which is always an indication of an artist who is being true to himself.  I hope that I’ve been able to do the same.

(As a musician, and not just in pictures.  Why do I always revert to these weird open-mouthed poses?)

In any case, Ben Folds is my favorite Ben.  Even when we’re dressed as Sonny and Cher.