Peter van Gelder

Peter Van Gelder
Van Gelder in 2019
Van Gelder in 2019
Background information
Birth namePeter Van Gelder
Born (1940-03-19) 19 March 1940 (age 84)
Genres
Occupation(s)musician, educator
Instrument(s)sitar, tenor saxophone, bass guitar
Years active2005–present
Websitehttps://petervangelder.com/

Peter Van Gelder (born March 19, 1940) is a sitarist and musician who played saxophone and bass in The Great Society.[1]

Van Gelder moved to San Francisco after college and learned bass to play in The Great Society; he played saxophone on White Rabbit.[2] He became interested in Indian music after working at a San Francisco radio station and took a summer class at University of California Berkeley with Ali Akbar Khan where he learned to play sitar.[2] Deciding to continue his studies with Khan in Kolkata, he lived in India for three years and became a disciple of Ali Akbar Khan.[2][3] While in India, he met other musicians with whom he formed the band The Saddhu Brand when he returned to California.[4]

He is an instructor at the Ali Akbar College of Music in San Rafael, California.[1][5][6]

  1. ^ a b "Peter van Gelder Master of the Sitar". Sonoma County Library. 2015-03-18. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  2. ^ a b c "East Indian Classical Music In Concert". The Taos News. March 30, 2005. p. 66. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  3. ^ "Entertainment: Saturday". Santa Cruz Sentinel. February 21, 1992. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  4. ^ Gaeddert, Beth (June 25, 1970). "Girl-voices combine with peaceful Indian harmonies". Daily Independent Journal. San Rafael California. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  5. ^ "Billboard". Ukiah Daily Journal. November 15, 1996. p. A9. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  6. ^ "Faculty - Ali Akbar College of Music". Ali Akbar College of Music. 2020-10-19. Retrieved 2021-01-24.