BEN MARMEN, Lower Strings

Ben Marmen completed his BMus in Cello Performance under Shimon Walt at Dalhousie University. He served as a section cellist in Symphony Nova Scotia from 2014-2022, then completed a MA in  Musicology at Dalhousie. He has performed as soloist with Symphony  Nova Scotia, The Saint Andrew’s Arts Council Festival Orchestra, the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra, the Dalhousie Symphony Orchestra, Nova 

Sinfonia, and Chebucto Symphony Orchestra. As a chamber musician, Ben has performed in most concert series in the Maritimes. 

Ben has also enjoyed performing beyond the classical stage, such as with Natalie MacMaster, guitarist Maxim Cormier, and singer songwriters Mo Kenney and Selby Evans. He has been featured in  soundtracks by local composers and directors. In theatre, he composed and performed a solo cello accompaniment to Shakespeare’s Macbeth, directed by Ken Schwartz, at Neptune Theatre’s Scotiabank Stage,  which was nominated for Best New Score at Theatre Nova Scotia’s Robert Merritt Awards. Ben has even waited tables as a cello-playing  character in a comedy show at the Grafton Street Dinner Theatre. 

Ben now maintains membership in the Atlantic Federation of Musicians  and works as a freelance cellist, while most of his time is spent working  for a global non-profit called OMF. 

Ben lives in Halifax with his wife Lydia, who is also a cellist, and their two children.