Ben Folds on Keeping Art Alive

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In this episode of Backstage Bay Area, host Steve Roby interviews Ben Folds, the pianist, songwriter, and arts advocate who has spent three decades balancing sharp, story-driven pop songs with orchestral ambition. Fresh off the release of Ben Folds Live with the National Symphony Orchestra and deep into his work on the new holiday album Sleigher, Folds discusses what it means to keep art alive in a noisy, distracted culture.

The conversation shifts from his years at the Kennedy Center to the details of writing for orchestra, from the small dramas within songs like "Christine From The 7th Grade" and "But Wait There's More." Folds explores his long-standing Keys For Kids initiative and explains why access to instruments and music education still feels crucial to him.

Playlist

• Ben Folds "Christine From The 7th Grade" from Live with the National Symphony Orchestra (New West Records)
• Ben Folds "But Wait There's More" from Live with the National Symphony Orchestra (New West Records)

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