Ben Model (born 1962) is an American musician, historian, publisher, and presenter of
silent films. An
accompanist, he composes and performs organ or piano music for silent films. He accompanies films live and records scores for home video releases.
He founded a DVD label called Undercrank Productions that releases rare or lost silent films. His name is accented on the second syllable (mo-DELL).
Biography
Model was a student of silent film organist Lee Erwin.
He volunteered to provide musical accompaniment to silent films showings while a film student. His live performances are largely improvised. The music he plays also provides audio cues to shifts in the story and highlights actions and events in the films.
Model has hosted programs for the
Cleveland Institute of Art[ and ]Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
. In New York City. He travels extensively doing presentations, many in schools. He performs regularly at MoMA and at the Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
’ Packard Campus Theater.[
In 2020, during the ]COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, Model and film historian Steve Massa hosted a weekly live-streamed show of silent films with musical accompaniment.
He and fellow performers David Razin and Stephen Horne as well as orchestras and bands accompanying films have drawn crowds and helped renew audience interest in the silent film genre.[ He has discussed filmmakers such as Alice Guy.]
Bibliography
*''Accidentally Preserved: Notes on the Films'' by Steven Massa, Ben Model, Undercrank Productions (November 27, 2013)
See also
* Paul Killiam
References
External links
His Silent Film Music websiteHis Undercrank Productions website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Model, Ben
American film historians
1962 births
Living people
21st-century American composers
21st-century American organists