Benjamin Finley
The Garden Organ | Campbellford
At 14, Ben Finley plucked his first bass string. Immediately, things fell still, without worry, in playful possibility… Ben Finley is a collaborative performer-composer and community-engaged artist specializing in creative acoustic and electric bass playing. He performs with several genre-defying ensembles and is the Associate Artistic & Managing Director at Westben—a rural music festival farm. As a passionate earth-care advocate, Ben is also Westben’s Sustainability Coordinator and holds a PhD in Critical Studies in Improvisation from the University of Guelph, where he explored music festivals and creative music as sites of eco-cultural regeneration.
About the Project
Co-designed with community members, we will co-build an outdoor musical instrument in one of Campbellford's community gardens/public spaces using reclaimed and forgotten musical instruments. Working together with a local machinist, we will construct and co-imagine an instrument that is weather-friendly, safe, low-maintenance, and fun for all! The playing of the instrument, as well as the design and building processes, are meant to foster collaboration and joy!