He arrived in New York City in 1985, spending time at Barry Harris's Jazz Cultural Theater.

At the request of Bette Midler, he started a jazz program for New York City high schools.

He is the founding director of the jazz program at the Lucy Moses School at Kaufman Center in Manhattan where he teaches.

His book Talk Jazz: Guitar (Mel Bay, 2004) includes a CD with a removable guitar track of Ben-Hur performing the exercises in the book with Tardo Hammer on piano, Earl May on bass, and Leroy Williams on drums.

Ben-Hur lives in Teaneck, New Jersey, with his wife, singer Amy London, and their two daughters.