By Christopher John Treacy
The Boston Herald 
The 122nd opening night at the Boston Pops went off with a bang - namely that of singer-songwriter Ben Folds’ piano keys.
As a prelude to this year’s Edgefest, which will unite the Pops with the Cowboy Junkies and M. Ward in late June, Folds took a breather from producing Dresden Doll Amanda Palmer’s solo debut to grace Symphony Hall with his musical presence.
Joining conductor Keith Lockhart on stage, Folds received a rock ’n’ roll roar from the impeccably dressed crowd before pounding out the opening riff of “Zak and Sara.” The big band behind him responded with carefully placed chiming flourishes before building to a booming finish.
In his half-seated piano man pose, Folds demonstrated through a course of eight songs just how well his theatrically informed compositions lend themselves to symphonic treatment, underscored by his having done this sort of gig before elsewhere.
Lockhart and Co. provided delicate, tambourine-spiked chugging rhythms for “Jesusland,” and coaxed “Lullabye” into a sax-induced bluesy jaunt. Folds’ loveably nerdy voice sounded great, though you could tell he was working to maintain his pitch.
For “Not the Same,” he recreated his own concert tradition by coercing the Pops crowd into three-part harmony accompaniment. It’s amazing what a little charisma accomplishes.
Folds gave the orchestra props, noting, “They make really hard stuff look easy - exactly the opposite of what rock stars do.” Then Lockhart brewed a dramatic landscape for the suitelike “Narcolepsy,” featuring tenor Edgar Ramirez, whose classically trained voice created a cool, almost surreal contrast to Folds’ untucked rock ’n’ roll aesthetic.
The first half of the program dealt in similarly cinematic fare: The Pops started Lockhart’s 13th season by paying tribute to Oscar and Tony.
Beginning with the festive overture to “Carnival,” they recreated the title sequence from “The Sound ofMusic” before giving way to “The Phantom of the Opera’s” “The Music of the Night,” which swelled with romantic wonder. The set ended rife with the sexy swagger of “All That Jazz” from “Chicago.”
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