Ben Folds Surprise Releases Live Album Today w/ Kennedy Center's National Symphony Orchestra
BEN FOLDS CELEBRATES INDEPENDENCE DAY
WITH TODAY’S RELEASE OF
BEN FOLDS LIVE WITH THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA -
BRAND-NEW ALBUM RECORDED LIVE WITH THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (NSO)
AT THE KENNEDY CENTER IN WASHINGTON, DC
BEFORE FOLDS STEPPED DOWN AS THE NSO’S FIRST-EVER ARTISTIC ADVISOR
OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT MADE THIS MORNING
WITH IN-STORE LAUNCH EVENT AND LIVESTREAM Q&A SESSION
AT WASHINGTON, DC’S BYRDLAND RECORDS
SET FOR 11:00 AM-1:00 PM (ET)
LIVE WITH THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA FEATURES CLASSIC HITS AND NEW MUSIC
SPANNING FOLDS’ GENRE-BENDING BODY OF WORK JOINED BY THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA CONDUCTED BY STEVEN REINEKE AND SPECIAL GUEST ARTISTS REGINA SPEKTOR AND TALL HEIGHTS
BEN FOLDS LIVE WITH THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AVAILABLE NOW
Ben Folds is celebrating Independence Day with today’s release of Ben Folds Live with the National Symphony Orchestra, a brand-new album recorded in concert at the sold-out Concert Hall of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC on October 25 and 26, 2024 – mere months before Folds resigned his position as the first ever Artistic Advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) following President Trump’s decision to seize control of the esteemed Kennedy Center. The album is available now at all DSPs and streaming services; multiple physical products are available, including CDs, signed CDs, standard black vinyl, signed standard black vinyl, opaque white vinyl, signed opaque white vinyl, signed metallic gold vinyl, and limited-edition Coke Bottle green vinyl.
Folds will officially announce Ben Folds Live with the National Symphony Orchestra this morning with a special in-store launch event at Washington, DC’s Byrdland Records (1264 5th Street NE, Washington, DC, 20002) set for 11:00 am-1:00 pm (ET), marking his first appearance in the nation’s capital since publicly announcing his resignation earlier this year. In addition to meeting fans and signing copies of the new album, the event will see Folds conduct a livestream Q&A session – LIVE STREAM HERE. Folds will also sit down with TalkShopLive for a conversation about the new album on July 10 at 8:30 p.m. ET. Fans can purchase the album as an exclusive signed CD from TalkShopLive. Watch HERE.
PURCHASE/STREAM TO BEN FOLDS LIVE
WITH THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Folds – who yesterday headlined a special Pops On Independence concert in Philadelphia, PA at Independence National Historical Park alongside The Philly Pops – will mark the arrival of Ben Folds Live with the National Symphony Orchestra with a wide-ranging US tour schedule that will see him performing solo dates and symphony concerts alongside some of the country’s leading orchestras. For complete details and ticket information, please visit www.benfolds.com/tour.
Ben Folds Live with the National Symphony Orchestra sees Folds performing classic hits and new music from his genre-bending body of work thus far, joined by the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Principal Pops Conductor of the NSO Steven Reineke along with very special guest artists Regina Spektor and Tall Heights; the makeshift choir includes Doug Peck, Nicholas Kassoy and Marc Silvey. Live recording producers include David Boucher, Joe Costa, Justin Ellis, and Ben Folds. Orchestrators include Jherek Bischoff, Alex Turley, Eric Allen, and Rob Moose. The recordings were mixed by Boucher and mastered by Kim Rosen.
Having spent eight years carefully nurturing orchestral innovation and programming with actual purpose as the National Symphony Orchestra’s first-ever Artistic Advisor, Ben Folds officially offered his resignation at 1:59 pm Eastern on February 12, 2025 – exactly one minute after President Trump’s administrative regime change of the Kennedy Center officially took hold.
“I had my statement up by 2:01,” Folds says in an exclusive interview with Kyle Meredith, nationally syndicated radio host at WFPK FM, Louisville. “The takeover was at 2:00. I wanted no part of what was coming.”
Folds knew Trump’s taking over the traditionally bipartisan Kennedy Center wasn’t simply a reshuffling of jobs or a new marketing campaign. It was a betrayal of mission, a hostile remodeling of one of America’s most vital cultural institutions and artistic sanctuaries. More than simply a concert hall, the Kennedy Center has always been an essential engine for civic and artistic connection. As NSO Artistic Advisor, Folds gave young orchestrators a platform while helping to pilot programs like Declassified, which introduced modern songwriters to orchestral arrangements.
“We weren’t using the orchestra as props,” Folds says. “We were challenging them to bring new music to life, while giving the orchestra a one-size-fits-all role. Our experimentation was a beacon for other orchestras throughout the private sector.”
Now, with Ben Folds Live with the National Symphony Orchestra, Folds leaves behind a document of his experience at the Kennedy Center – part protest, part celebration, entirely earnest in its ambition. The album features a lush reimagining of old favorites like “Still Fighting It,” which, with its newly restored orchestral intro, manages to sound both bigger and more intimate than ever – an anthem turned lullaby, then turned back again.
“It works because it’s not pretending to be something else,” Folds says. “It’s using the orchestra as it should be used. To elevate, not decorate.”
Taken together, the album plays like a requiem for a moment and a love letter to everything that moment made possible. There’s humor, heartbreak, and conviction in every arrangement, from “Kristine from the Seventh Grade,” a tender gut-punch about misinformation and fractured friendships, to “Fragile,” which borrows its arrangement from Mozart but still sounds utterly modern. Having previously presented Regina Spektor’s premiere orchestral performance, Folds invited his old friend to return to the Kennedy Center stage to perform their popular duet, “You Don’t Know Me.” Among the many highlights, the soaring, ambitious “Capable of Anything” stands out for its Jherek Bischoff-orchestrated bridge and a message Folds describes as a warning shot.
“We’re all capable of terrible things,” Folds says. “But we’re also capable of doing better. That’s the choice.”
Part protest, part celebration, entirely earnest in its ambition, Ben Folds Live with the National Symphony Orchestra lands with the clarity of a final bow before the curtain drops. Except it’s not the end – it’s a rally cry.
“This album suddenly now feels much bigger,” Ben Folds says. “I knew we were making something special with the NSO. I didn’t know it’d be a time capsule of the last moment before it all got torn down.
“I still believe there’s more good than not,” he adds. “But you must work for it. You have to say something. Especially now.”
# # #
BEN FOLDS
BEN FOLDS LIVE WITH THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
(National Symphony Orchestra)
Download High-Res Album Cover
Tracklist
But Wait, There’s More
Fragile
Kristine From the 7th Grade
Effington
The Luckiest
Capable Of Anything
Still Fighting It
You Don’t Know Me (Feat. Regina Spektor)
Landed
Bonus Tracks
Still
Cologne *
Moments (Feat. Tall Heights) *
Gracie *
Not The Same *
* Digital Edition Bonus Tracks
BEN FOLDS UPCOMING 2025 TOUR DATES
JULY
22 – Portland, ME – State Theatre
23 – Rockport, MA – Shalin Liu Performing Arts Center
25 – Simsbury, CT – Simsbury Performing Arts Center (w/ the Hartford Symphony)
26 – Groton, MA – Groton Hill Music Center
27 – Cranston, RI – Park Theatre and Event Center
AUGUST
7 – Menlo Park, CA – The Guild Theatre
8 – Folsom, CA – Harris Center
9 – Las Vegas, NV – Wynn – Encore Theater
11 – Grand Junction, CO – Asteria Theatre
13 – Big Sky, MT – Warren Miller Performing Arts Center
14 – Jackson, WY – Jackson Hole Center for the Arts Center Theater
16 – South Jordan, UT – Rio Tinto Kennecott Stage at America First Square
SEPTEMBER
5 – Louisville, KY – Whitney Hall (w/ the Louisville Orchestra)
6 – Terre Haute, IN – Hatfield Hall
8 – Iowa City, IA – Hancher Auditorium
10 – Sioux City, IA – Orpheum Theatre (w/ the Sioux City Symphony Orchestra)
12 – Denver, CO – Boettcher Concert Hall (w/ the Colorado Symphony)
13 – Denver, CO – Boettcher Concert Hall (w/ the Colorado Symphony)
16 – Oklahoma City, OK – Tower Theatre
17 – Little Rock, AR – The Hall
19 – Abilene, TX – The Paramount Theatre
20 – New Braunfels, TX – Brauntex Theatre
21 – Fort Worth, TX – Tannahill’s Tavern & Music Hall
24 – Lafayette, LA – Heymann Performing Arts Center
26 – Atlanta, GA – Atlanta Symphony Hall (w/ the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra)
27 – Atlanta, GA – Atlanta Symphony Hall (w/ the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra)
OCTOBER
4 – Grand Rapids, MI – DeVos Performance Hall (w/ the Grand Rapids Symphony)
5 – Dayton, OH – Schuster Center
7 – Pittsburgh, PA – Heinz Hall for the Performing Art (w/ the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra)
10 – Asheville, NC – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium (w/ the Asheville Symphony)
11 – Winston–Salem, NC – RJ Reynolds Auditorium (w/ the Winston–Salem Symphony)
15 – North Bethesda, MD – Music Center at Strathmore
16 – Wilkes-Barre, PA – F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts
18 – Erie, PA – Warner Theatre
19 – Rochester, NY – Beston Hall
21 – Norwalk, CT – District Music Hall
23 – Brookville, NY – Tilles Center for the Performing Arts
NOVEMBER
6 – Rockford, IL – Coronado Theatre
8 – Waukegan, IL – Genesee Theatre
10 – Champaign, IL – Virginia Theatre
11 – Marion, IL – Marion Cultural and Civic Center
14 – Flint, MI – FIM Capitol Theatre
16 –Newark, OH – Midland Theatre
18 – Charleston, SC – Charleston Gaillard Center
20 – Fort Meyers, FL – Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall
21 – Coral Springs, FL – The Center – Coral Springs Center for the Arts
22 – Ponte Vedra Beach, FL – Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
DECEMBER
2 – Portland, OR – Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (w/ the Oregon Symphony)
4 – Seattle, WA – Benaroya Hall (w/ the Seattle Symphony)
ABOUT BEN FOLDS:
Ben Folds is an Emmy Award-nominated singer-songwriter who has created an enormous body of genre-bending music that includes pop albums with Ben Folds Five, multiple solo albums, a holiday album, and numerous collaborative records. He currently tours as a pop artist, while also performing with some of the world’s greatest symphony orchestras.
A New York Times best-selling author, Folds also composes new music for film, TV, and theatre. In 2022, he launched Keys For Kids, a charitable music education initiative in his native state of North Carolina which provides funds and keyboards to existing nonprofits that offer free or affordable piano lessons to school-age children from economically disadvantaged households. He also advocates for arts funding in schools and communities as a member of Americans For The Arts and on the Board of the Arts Action Fund.
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Photo Credit: Joe Vaughn
