Ben Model is a musician, historian, publisher, teacher and presenter of silent film. He creates and performs live music on both piano and organ at MOMA and the Library of Congress’ Packard Campus Theater. On this episode we uncover the tricks of undercranking, explore the delicate balance on playing for silent film, and how the pandemic shaped the online theatrical world. silentfilmmusic.com

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Ben Model is one of the nation’s leading silent film accompanists, performing on both piano and theatre organ. Over the past 43 years, he has created and performed thousands of live scores for silent films at universities, museums, and historic theaters, and is one of the few exponents of this craft who is working at it full-time. Ben is a resident film accompanist at the Museum of Modern Art (NY) and at the Library of Congress’ Packard Campus Theatre, and he accompanies silents at classic film festivals around the USA and internationally.

Ben’s Blu-ray label “Undercrank Productions” works with film archives and collectors to bring undiscovered gems of silent cinema to fans. Ben is a Visiting Professor of Film at Wesleyan University, and is the archivist for the Ernie Kovacs Television Collection. His book “The Silent Film Universe” will be published in 2025.

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Produced and Edited by Arts and Craft.
Theme Music: Sound Gallery by Dmitry Taras.